Impossible Circumstances
by Manni Bothands
Summary: After a long day at work Sarah arrives home to her apartment only to find two strange men waiting for her. After an explanation of where the two had come from that was impossible to believe and several promises not to harm her, Sarah reluctantly allows the two strangers to stay with her until they can find a way back home.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: What should already be obvious is that none of the naruto characters featured in this story are my creation. This is my first attempt creating a fanfiction and I make no claims of being fantastic writer. In all honesty I really have no idea where I'm going with this. I'm just sort of making it up as I go. **

**I'm well aware that this is an over used concept. I've read several stories involving various Naruto characters coming to the real world, so I thought I'd try it with characters I haven't seen used that often. Unfortunately these are ones I probably know the least about (not that I'm the most knowledgable Naruto fan to begin with) so I apologise if they are out of character.  
**

Pushing on a set of heavy glass doors I stepped out of the medical laboratory building and into the gloomy, grey world of November. The ground was wet from yet another recent bout of rain creating circular rainbow patterns in places where motor oil had stained the asphalt of the parking lot that stretched out before me. Overhead the sky was painted a solid shade of seemingly unending grey. Securing the belt of my winter jacket around my slender waist more tightly to fight of the late autumn chill I made my way towards my car. It had been a long day, and the staff meeting at the end only made it feel all the longer. Thankfully it was the weekend, a long weekend too, so I wouldn't have to worry about all the "changes" they wanted to start implementing until later.

"Can you believe they want use to start scheduling our breaks?" A disgruntled voice commented beside me, their footsteps easily matching my own.

I didn't need to turn to learn who the voice belonged to. It was definitely Pam. Out of all my co-workers Pam and I probably got along the best. She was a tall, heavier set woman with short, neatly cropped blond hair. Pam may have been a larger woman but she wasn't afraid to tell you where to shove it if you tried telling her she should lose weight, and that's what I loved about her. I had to discreetly bite my lip to prevent myself from laughing. Pam liked to save her breaks and just take an hour long lunch, especially during the warmer months. The scheduling system they were going to start imposing would end that ability. It wasn't at all surprising that she was pissed off about the upcoming change.

"I mean c'mon isn't there something more important that we should be focusing on?" she continued to rant. "Like how to get more coverage for…."

"The ass-reduction surgery that you so badly need?," I mocked teasingly.

"Or the skinny-bitch-ectomy that you need," she shot back.

Stopping we turned to glare at each other in mock anger before breaking out in a fit of laugher. We often teased each other about being too fat or too thin but it was all in good fun. Reaching into my purse I pulled out a set of keys before once again continuing through the parking lot towards my car. "Seriously though, I wish they would give use more coverage for medical expenses. My chiropractic bills are killing me." Pam continued.

"True, but you do realise that wasn't what the meeting was about right?"

"I know I know," she groaned, "it was all about making things more _efficient_ and _improving techniques_."

"Any plans for the weekend," I asked changing the subject and hopefully her growing irritated mood. The changes weren't ideal but I could see their point. I of course wasn't about to voice that opinion out loud to Pam.

"Mark and I are going to head up to New York for the weekend," she answered with a large grin. She had been talking about taking a trip to New York with her husband for months. To the point where I was about ready to book the trip for her myself if she didn't stop going on about it.

"Make sure to bring me back something," I half joked. I didn't really expect her to buy me anything but at the same time I wasn't about to turn down a gift if it was given.

"How about you," she questioned stopping at her own parked car.

"Nothing special," I shrugged, stopping once again so we could continue our conversations without the need to shout across the sea of parked cars. "Probably just going to stay indoors, download some movies and eat an unholy amount of chocolate chip cookies."

Pam rolled her eyes at me in exaggerated exasperation. "Firstly, that you can eat so much junk food and not gain a pound is tremendously unfair, and secondly you should get out, not spend your entire weekend cooped up in that apartment of yours."

This was where Pam and I differed. She was the party girl. The one whose idea of fun was staying out all night drinking, hopping from bar to bar before stumbling home in the early hours of the morning. Apparently, marriage had done little to change that. I on the other hand was the textbook definition of a wallflower when it came to parties, preferring instead to spend most of my time alone much to Pam's chagrin.

"You want me to set you up with someone," she asked, the hope that I would agree obviously apparently in her voice. "Because Mark's friend Dave has asked…"

"Ewww! You mean the one with the lip ring?" I blurted out suddenly, throwing my hands up to signal her to stop talking. "No thank you." I had met Dave at a BBQ Mark and Pam had at their house back in August. He was some sort of hybrid combination of wanna-be-rocker and nerd. A nice enough guy sure, but I had absolutely no interest in dating him.

"You are just so…"

"Happily single," I supplied with a grin.

"Frustratingly picky," she answered dryly. I'm not sure exactly when it had started but Pam had recently become determined to set me up with someone. That was the thing about married people I supposed, the idea that someone was happy being single was such a foreign concept to them.

"Who knows," I commented, giving a non-committal shrug, "perhaps someday I'll meet someone." I ignored her expression that clearly stated _of course you will _and continued on my way, offering a small wave as a last good-bye for the evening. "Oh, and have fun in New York." I commented over my shoulder.

I heard a "you know it" and the sound of a car door closing.

Pulling in my reserved space in the underground parking lot of my apartment building I parked my car and retrieved the groceries out of the trunk. I had swung by the grocery store to pick up a few things on my way home. This wasn't my usual shopping day, I reserved that for Sunday, and so I only had two bags to carry up to my apartment. Briefly I thought about walking up the seven flights of stairs but the ache in my feet had me opting for the elevator.

Anticipation swelled within me as the elevator doors chimed open to my floor. It had been a long day and the weather was wet and miserable so I was really looking forward to changing into a pair of warm pajamas and curling up on the couch for the rest of the evening. At some point I'd throw something together for dinner, but being warm and comfortable was my more immediate concern.

Opening my door I flicked on the hallway light and tossed my keys into a bowl I had sitting on a table in the entryway. I had barely made it down the hall when a large hand wrapped securely over my mouth preventing my ability to scream. Instantly the bags I had carried in my other hand fell to the ground.

Panic began to fluid my system, my eyes circling widely in a futile effort to see who was behind me. Why was there someone in my apartment? Had I just blundered into a robbery mid-session? Suddenly a tall man with shaggy blond hair and bright blue eyes stepped out from my kitchen into the hallway. His eyes widened briefly before turning his attention to a point above my head.

"Jiraiya-sensai?," the blond man questioned uneasily.

For the first time since I had known her I was actually regretting not accepting Pam's offer to set me up on a date tonight. If I had I at least someone would be expecting me. As it was, no one would be expecting me anywhere until Tuesday morning. I wasn't stupid enough to think that I could get to the door and call the cops before one of them stopped me, especially not with one of them currently wrapping his hand over my mouth. With any luck maybe they would finish up with robbing my place and be on their way. Although I wasn't thrilled with the idea of being robbed, having some things taken was for more preferable to being raped and/or killed.

"Don't scream, we promise not to hurt you," said a deep male voice behind me.

The hand that had covered my mouth slipped away, restoring my ability to speak. Annoyance slowly began to replace the panic that raced throw me as an outrageous explanation for why two men might be occupying my apartment formed.

"Dammit! Did Pam put you up to this?" I questioned indignantly. Trying to set me up on a date was one thing, having men break into my apartment was crossing the line. "You know that is just so classic her. That woman and I are going to have to have a serious talk when she gets back."

Both men were now standing shoulder to shoulder in my hallway, arms crossed and twin quizzical expressions decorating their faces. The one that had been behind me was taller than the blond, with long shaggy white hair and dark eyes. Long red lines were tattooed under each eye that ran all the way down to his jaw. _Odd choice for a tattoo_ I thought. Glancing over to Mr. Blond I noticed that he had no tattoos, at least none that where visible.

"Sorry kid, neither of us knows who this Pam woman is," said Mr. White, his dark eyes watching me closely.

_Wait did he just call me kid?_ Before I could get annoyed at the comment the realization of what he had said started to set in. If this wasn't one of Pam's outlandish schemes then…. "What are you doing in my apartment?," I questioned cautiously. Not at all certain I cared to know the answer.

"Umm well," Mr. Blond began, nervously scratching the back of his head, "we don't really know how we got here."

That was strange; surely they would know how they had broken into my apartment. For a moment I thought that maybe they were just drunk and that they really had been sent here by Pam. The complete lack of any scent of alcohol quickly put an end to that idea. I briefly thought that perhaps they were on some type of drug but they seemed oddly coherent to be high.

"Okay then, just answer me this is either of you going to rape and or murder me tonight?"

"Absolutely not!," Mr. Blond quickly replied, his voice heavily laced with disgust at the mere suggestion of such a thing. "Jiraiya-sensai said that we wouldn't harm you and we won't."

Well that was a relief. Of course they could have been totally lying but for now I let the knowledge that I wasn't in any immediate physical danger wash over me. The more I looked at these guys the more my brain kept telling me that something wasn't quite right about them. Aside from the odd way they were dressed they seemed normal enough, but there was just something odd about them. "Since you're not here to harm me was there something I can do for you?" _Like show you to the front door_ I finished silently.

"You could start by telling us where we are." This from Mr. White or Jiraiya-sensai as Mr. Blond had referred to him.

"You are currently standing in the hallway of my apartment, seriously eating into my plans for this evening."

"I think what Jiraiya-sensai meant was what village is this?"

Village? Okay, forget the alcohol or drug hypothesis. I was seriously starting to question brain damage or some other type of mental disorder. "The city you are in," I began emphasizing the word city, "is called Vancouver, which is in the province of British Columbia in the country Canada."

"Van-coover? I have never heard of this place. Have you?" Mr. Blond questioned turning his attention to the other man.

"I have not."

"Glossing over how the hell you got into my apartment in the first place, perhaps you can just tell me where it is you're supposed to be so I can call you a cab and you can be on your way."

Strangely both men seemed apprehensive at the idea of leaving my apartment. Once again my brain was buzzing with the idea that something wasn't quite right, aside from the fact that I was being stared at by two strangers.

"I think it would be best if we stayed here, at least until we can figure out how to get back."

I really didn't like where this was going. How was staying at my place supposed to help them get back home? That didn't make any sense. "Look, I'm not running a hotel here," I began crossing my arms over my chest, "Perhaps you'd better start by telling me who you are and what is going on."

Stunned couldn't even begin to describe my current condition. We had moved to my living room with Mr. Blond or Minato as I now knew him sitting beside me on the couch and Jiraiya sitting in my armchair across from us. I don't know what I had expected but an explanation involving ninjas and elemental villages certainly hadn't been it. When it became obvious that I didn't believe their explanation the one named Jiraiya began to try to explain something called chakra, ninjutsu and other ninja-esc sounding techniques. Everything he started talked about sounding more impossible than the last.

"That's a pretty fantastical story, you really ought to think about becoming a writer," I commented sarcastically, "but maybe it's time you started telling me the truth."

Jiraiya, who had done most of the speaking, recoiled in indignation. If I didn't know any better I would say that he looked absolutely flabbergasted and appalled that I wasn't buying their story and had pretty much accused them of lying.

"Perhaps a demonstration is in order," Minato suggested, "If you would be so kind as to move to another place in this domicile."

I had no idea what he was planning but the sooner they both dropped this ninja act and started telling me the truth the better. Clearly something was wrong with them. No one wants to be branded with the stigma of mental illness, but sometimes you had to face the truth and admit that you needed help. "Alright," I agreed eager to get this over. As I stood up from my sitting position on the couch Minato gently place a hand on my back.

"Remember we aren't going to hurt you."

_That was reassuring_ I thought sarcastically. Unsure of where it was exactly that he wanted me to go I decided to head back down the hall to retrieve my forgotten groceries. Before I could blink Minato was standing in front of me holding out the grocery bags.

"HOLY FUCKING HELL!," I shrieked as my heart leaped into my throat.

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to startle you," Minato tried to sooth, holding his hands up with his palms facing toward me, "I just wanted to show you that Jiraiya-sensai is telling the truth."

Okay, so maybe they weren't lying.

Minato had politely offered to put my food away before disappearing into the kitchen. Thankfully both men were giving me space to let the reality of what they had told me sink in. In a shock induced stupor I mindlessly stumbled towards the bathroom. Perhaps a warm shower and the refreshing, light scent of soap would help to calm my frazzled state. Normally I wouldn't think of showering with strangers in my home but now I couldn't be bothered to care. I needed something normal, something routine to calm myself.

As I stood in the shower letting the warm water wash over me every logical fiber in my being was screaming that they were lying. They had to be, but the demonstration that Minato had given was proof that they weren't. No man could move that fast. Slowly but reluctantly accepting the impossible I turned off the shower and proceeded with the ritual of drying and changing into a set of flannel pajamas.

"Are you alright," Minato worriedly asked as I returned to the living room, "you've been gone a while."

"I have ninjas with magical super powers sitting in my living room. Why wouldn't I be alright?" I commented dryly, my voice shaking with obvious nervousness.

"You're really that scared?" Jiraiya commented.

"Is a pig's ass pork?" I snapped back. Of course I was scared. Who the hell wouldn't be? Although they said they wouldn't hurt me how was I supposed to escape from someone with could literally blink himself in front of me if they decided to revoke that statement? And who knew what the other one was capable of.

Jiraiya let out a loud bark of laughter at my comment. "You're alright kid, but definitely not a ninja. No trained ninja would ever openly admit to afraid."

"You honestly thought I might be a ninja?"

"I've entertained the thought that this might be some type of genjutsu. If it is, it's obviously not being cast by you."

I wasn't sure whether I should be feeling relieved or insulted by that comment.

"So," Minato started nervously, "are you going to let us stay here?"

What choice did I have? They obviously weren't from around here and despite my misgivings throwing them out on the streets of Vancouver in this cool weather would be cruel. Resigned to letting the stay for the time being I nodded once in reply.

"Thank you, Sarah," both men replied clearly relieved.

"Don't mention it; just keep your promise not to kill me."

After another loud, barking laugh from Jiraiya and several promises from Minato that on their honor I would not be harmed I found myself rummaging through one of my closets in search of spare blankets and bedding.

"I'm sorry I don't have any guest beds all I have is the couch, so one of you will have to sleep on the floor." I said, dropping a set of pillows, some sheets, a blanket and a rolled up sleeping bag on to the previously mentioned couch. "I'd offer you a change of clothes to sleep in but," I paused looking down at my 5" 2' 100 pound frame, "I don't think I have anything that would fit." It was true. Both men were at least 6 feet so there was no way that even my loose-fitting clothes would be able to fit them.

"That bed you have in the other room looks like it easily fit two," Jiraiya commented playfully while suggestively wiggling his eyebrows at me.

"Sensai," Minato started warningly.

"She's cute. Can't blame a guy for trying," he shrugged.


	2. Chapter 2

**So here's another chapter. If you're hoping for a story that actually builds up to some type of interesting plot you are going to be disappointed. I have no great scheme for things I am literally just making this up as I go. **

**Disclaimer: I shouldn't have to say this, obviously I don't own Naruto. **

I awoke the following morning to the sound of my cell phone ringing. The loud, obnoxious tune preventing any chance of falling back to sleep. I was going to have to seriously rethink what I had as a ringtone, but for the moment I would find out just who had decided to disrupt my slumber. Lazily I reached out from under the blankets and snatched the offensive object off the night stand, swiping a finger over the touch screen to accept the call before holding it to my ear.

"Hello," I answered drowsily.

"Let me guess its 10:30 and you're not even dressed," said an annoyingly happy voice on the other end of the line. "I'll bet money you're not even out of bed yet."

So I enjoyed sleeping in on the weekends, sue me. Besides after spending the remainder of the previous evening showing my unexpected house guests around the apartment and instructing them on how to use various objects, such as the shower and coffee maker, within said apartment I think I more than earned the right to laze around in bed for as long as I damn well pleased.

"I'm not taking that bet." I knew there was no point in trying to pretend I had been awake. He could already tell that I had just woken up by the sound of my voice.

"Well, get dressed honey. I have a Saturday off and you are going to meet me for brunch."

Brain sluggish from sleep it took a moment for me to register who I was talking to. It was Adam. I had met Adam four years ago when he started cutting my hair. He was your stereotypical gay hair stylist, bold, overly cheerful and an absolute joy to be around. We had hit it off during the many hours I had spent sitting in his chair, chatting as he worked on my hair. Eventually we started hanging out outside of the salon.

Brunch sounded good but was I really comfortable leaving Minato and Jirayia alone in my apartment? Not particularly, but bringing them along wasn't an appealing option either. Frustrated I pressed my face into my pillow to muffle a groan. Damn it all! Why did the universe seem to be against me having a peaceful, quiet weekend?

"I can't. I..uhh..have company." I crossed my fingers and hoped that he would accept that excuse and not ask questions. Trying to explain the presence of magical ninja in my apartment was going to be difficult if not impossible.

"Liar, you do not. I keep telling you, people you play with online do not count as company," he taunted playfully. "So…who have you got over anyway?"

Damn no such luck. "Oh my god you are such a bitch," I teased. "I do so have company. No one you know. Just some _friends _that need a place to stay for a few days." It felt awkward referring to them as friends but the alternative was to tell Adam that they were total strangers.

"Whatever honey. Look the more the merrier. 11:30 Café Medina, be there or I'll come and get you." With that the line went dead leaving no room for argument.

Throwing off the covers I slipped out of bed and proceeded to lazily stumble my way towards the bathroom. When nothing but silence greeted me I felt a wave of relief. Perhaps it had all been a dream. A rather strange and vivid dream, but a dream nonetheless. Just so I could be sure I decided to take a quick peek into the living room. Reality hit me like a boot to the gut. There, sitting on the floor in what I assumed was a meditative pose, was Minato. Blankets already neatly folded and piled to one side of the couch. Glancing over to the armchair I noticed that the sleeping bag was rolled back up as well.

"Ah, you're a wake."

I turned to see Jiraiya walking towards me, having come from the bathroom. At the sound of Jiraiya's voice Minato's eyes snapped open. Obviously finished with whatever he was doing he lifted himself off the floor. "Good morning Sarah," he greeted.

"Uhh…yeah, good morning." I wasn't trying to be rude. I just honestly wasn't sure how I was supposed to act around these two, and as much as I hated to admit it they still made me nervous. "Hey, uhh…listen I have to head out for a few hours. Help you're self to whatever is in the fridge. The remote for the TV is on the coffee table if you get bored." I pointed to electronic device just in case they forgot about that part of the tour from last night.

I didn't wait for a reply. I was going to have to shower and get ready quickly if I was to meet Adam on time.

My boots clicked against the pavement as I made my way to Café Medina. Luckily Granville was within walking distance to Gastown so I didn't have to worry about taking my car, which was good because finding parking would have been a bitch.

Adam had already gotten us a seat by the time I arrived. He looked up from his menu when he felt me approach and greeted me with a friendly smile. "Glad you could make it honey. Where are your friends?" He glanced around behind me to see if anyone else was coming.

"They couldn't make it," I lied.

"That's too bad," he sympathized, "Another time perhaps."

I gave a non-committal response and proceeded to look through the menu. Adam probably believed I was lying about the whole thing but what else could I do? _So Adam, these are two ninjas with crazy abilities that somehow magically appeared in my apartment._ Yeah, that would go over real well. Better he think I told a little white lie than him thinking I was completely bat-crap crazy.

Thankfully he didn't ask me any more on the subject. We ordered our food and fell into our comfortable routine of eating, catching up and chatting about everything.

"So, when are you coming to get your hair done?" He asked as we waited for our server to return with the bill. "I'm thinking with your long hair bangs might be cute."

Adam knew that I often liked to change my hairstyle and was quick to offer suggestions. "I'm not sure," I answered reaching into my purse for my wallet. "I was thinking of maybe cutting it short."

"Put that away," he snapped pointing viciously at my hand that now held my wallet. "You got the last one so this is my treat, and don't you dare cut your hair short honey, you look gorgeous with it long."

"You're the boss," I smirked.

When our server returned Adam handed him his credit card to pay the bill. Suddenly something blond caught the corner of my eye. Turning to investigate my stomach dropped. There standing outside, his head visible through the large front window, was Minato. _What the hell is he doing here? _I inwardly shrieked. "Thanks for brunch Adam. Can you excuse me for a moment?"

Hopefully I could get him to blink himself…or transport himself…or whatever it is he did before anyone noticed him. "What are you doing here?" I asked in a harsh whisper.

"You left in such a hurry that Jiraiya and I worried something might be wrong, so I decided to follow you."

The fact that they apparently needed little provocation to believe it necessary to follow me was greatly alarming, the knowledge that they could follow me so easily without my knowing even more so. I suppose it made some sense though. I had only offered them the briefest of greetings before racing out the door. "Sorry about this morning, I was just running late. Everything is fine." I answered nervously searching for the other ninja-wizard. "Umm is Jiraiya here too?"

"No, he is back at your place doing…research."

That was a relief. Maybe I'd get lucky and Jiraiya would figure out how he and Minato could get back to where ever the hell they came from by the time I got back. The way my luck was going lately though, I wasn't holding my breath. "Any chance you could join him before…"

"Who is this?" Adam questioned, stepping on the sidewalk. "Normally I would say yikes to anything even remotely resembling hair metal, but on you darling it works." He swept his eyes up and down Minato several times appraisingly, a devilish smirk tugging at his mouth.

"Umm…" Minato stared blankly at Adam. No doubt confused about what hair metal was, or why Adam was suddenly eyeing him like he was a bacon sandwich.

"Adam, this is that _friend_ I was telling you about."

Eyes momentarily widening in surprise Adam turned to me in disbelief. "Oh good for you girl, no wonder you didn't want to get out of bed this morning. If I had a man like that in my bed?…mmm. It is a little early to be dressing' like an anime character though don't you think."

_God if you do exist please kill me. _I started coughing violently as I choked on my saliva. If I had a strange guy staying at my apartment of course Adam would assume we banged. Unfortunately it looked as though my prayers for the ground to open up and swallow me would go unanswered. "It's not like that," I sputtered. "He's just sleeping on my couch for a few nights while he's in town."

"So you mean he's free then?" By the lecherous look on his face I knew exactly what he was thinking.

"No!" I snapped. "I mean do you really want to do the whole long distance relationship thing?" I really had no idea if Minato was single or what his sexual orientation was. However, Adam trying to date the guy was a bad idea.

Adam sighed in defeat. "I suppose not." He wrapped his arms around me in a quick hug before bending to place a friendly kiss on my cheek. "It's been fun. Don't forget to see me about your hair honey." With a casual wave over his shoulder Adam disappeared into the crowded streets of Vancouver, leaving me alone with Minato.

"Your friend is strange." Minato commented watching Adam's retreating form.

"There's no irony in that is there?"

Minato turned to me, his expression silently asking me to explain.

"Never mind"

I had tempted fate by foolishly thinking that things couldn't get any worse. I was wrong. What should have been a twenty-minute trip took hours because Minato seemed to get distracted by anything and everything and wanted to investigate. Trying to explain that the _metallic beasts_ where not a ninja summons was extremely laughable. Thankfully this was downtown Vancouver, so no one really paid attention to how he was acting or what he was wearing. When we finally got back I walked into my apartment only to find it a total mess. Books, magazines and photo albums were scattered about the living room. Dirty dishes and what I assumed was spilled food stained my kitchen counters. What the heck had happened here?

A sound that could only be described as a masculine giggle caught my attention. What was he doing in my bedroom? Curious I started towards the direction of the sound followed closely by Minato. Jiraiya was in my bedroom alright. He was currently rummaging through what looked to be…. "Son of a bitch! Is that my underwear drawer?!"

Furious I grabbed the nearest thing I could reach and threw it at him. However, the sound of a shoe thumping off his back was not enough to satisfy my rage, so I continued grabbing anything that I could. If I could grab it I threw it. Had I been in a more rational state of mind I probably would have rethought the logic of attacking someone who, in all likelihood, could have me occupying several different trash bags before I could blink, but rational thought was taking a holiday because I was livid.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" I shouted pelting him with another object, this one a soft cover novel. "Why would you think it was okay to go through my things?"

With the exception of the shoe, Jiraiya easily block most of my projectiles, much to my annoyance. "I was..uhh…just doing research," he sheepishly replied as he turned towards me, a wad of lacy looking material bunched in one hand.

"Research?" I bite back venomously, "For what? Because I'm pretty sure that the solution for you two to get back home isn't going to be found in my underwear drawer!"

"I was actually doing research for a new novel I'm writing," he answered back voice laced with a false sense of innocence. As if invading someone's privacy was not only acceptable it was completely normal.

A novel? He violated my personal space for a novel? What the hell kind of novel was he writing anyway? On second thought I probably didn't want to know. "Get the fuck out of my room NOW or I am going to skin you alive, sew your hide into feety-pajamas and then set those pajamas on fire!" Again, threatening a mystical-ninja was probably not a smart idea, but I could regret it later. Assuming I lived long enough.

Luckily Jiraiya obeyed my shouted command and left my room without another word. Angrily crossing my vacated room towards my dresser I scooped out everything in the still open drawer and tossed it in the laundry basket. Washing everything was a bit neurotic perhaps, but I wasn't about to wear something that he had fondled. A shudder ran through me at the thought.

"I won't deny that what Jiraiya-sensai did was wrong," said a calm voice from the doorway, "but he really is a good man."

I turned to see Minato standing in the doorway. His expression was calm, but a look of sympathy poured from his eyes.

"That's a little hard to believe right now." I wasn't and all interested in hearing about whatever good qualities Jiraiya might have. I wanted to wallow in my rage and think of clever and vicious ways to get my revenge.

To my surprise Minato actually laughed. "He does have his quirks, but he is a courageous and truly loyal friend."

I wanted to stay angry, I really did. What Jiraiya had done was wrong, there was no denying that. I had to be honest with myself, however and admit that I was also to blame. Though I had allowed them to stay here I hadn't been taking their presence seriously, opting instead to ignore the situation in the naïve hope that it would somehow fix itself. Closing my eyes and pretending like they weren't here wasn't going to make the problem go away. As long as they were staying with me I was going to have to start taking my duties as host more seriously.

The first order of business would be to set up some ground rules. The second would be to find them some new clothes, something that didn't look like they were on their way to a Halloween party or an anime convention.

**Thanks for reading **

**I'm going to be busy with school so unfortunately updates are going to be sporadic. **


	3. Chapter 3

Had I been a more outgoing person, like either Adam or Pam, perhaps I would have handled this whole situation better, I thought as I emptied the contents of my laundry basket into the washer. I was a shy person by nature. It usually took me a while to warm up to _normal_ people. Getting used to _abnormal_ people in a situation that has been forced on me was going to be a challenge. _You could have said no_ I silently thought. It was true. I could have said no to them staying right from the beginning. Unfortunately I had the drawback of being a soft-hearted individual. Realistically I couldn't have turned away a stray cat, so the chances of me turning them away had been pretty slim.

After all, forcing my fellow humans out into the cold would have been monstrously cruel. Pushing the start button on the washer I paused, they were human right? At this point though, they could tell me they were aliens from Mars and it would have made about as much sense as anything they told me last night, ironically probably more so.

Leaving the washer to do its thing I headed towards the kitchen. To my complete surprise I found it cleaned. The dishes had been done and the counters and stove had been wiped down. I was certainly grateful, but it made me wonder how much time I had spent brooding/contemplating in my room.

Minato and Jiraiya were presently seated at my small kitchen table drinking tea. It abruptly became clear just how poor of a host I had been. I had not bothered to ask if they were familiar with the appliances in order to cook, nor had I offered them so much as a beverage. I had simply assumed that they had known how to use a stove or microwave and left them to fend for themselves. Thankfully it appeared as though they did know how, but I still felt guilty.

Pouring myself a cup of tea I joined them at the table. Despite my early session of shouting and launching projectiles, Jiraiya did not seem the least bit put out. In fact he seemed almost smug as he offered me a large grin and a suggestive wink when I sat down, which I found slightly irritating. I took a deep breath and a sip of tea to calm myself. Allowing myself to become angry again would do no good.

"As long as you are staying here I think it's fair that we set up some ground rules." I kept my voice as calm and rational as I could and was proud of myself for only having the barest hint of nervousness.

"That seems reasonable," Minato replied taking a sip of his own tea.

"Agreed"

"Alright, rule number 1: my room is off-limits." I turned a pointed glare on Jiraiya. "Rule number 2: it's probably best if you don't answer the phone. If you hear it ringing just let it go to voicemail." I had two reasons for this rule. First of all I didn't need one of them answering the phone when someone like Pam called. Pam was blabby and couldn't keep a secret. If she called Monday and one of them happened to answer it was a sure bet that by Tuesday the whole lab would know that I was "_shacked up with some guy_". Lastly, and this was probably more selfish, I wanted to keep my normal life and the part of my life that now involved them separate.

"Rule number 3: no unnecessary use of powers." It seemed ridiculous to say it, but they clearly had some type of abilities that regular humans didn't have. I had momentarily entertained the idea of having them list their powers for me, but the more I thought about it the more I was probably better off not knowing. What they had already shown me, such as some form of teleportation and glowing orbs had been terrifying enough. "That means no blinking in front of me without warning. Honestly I don't think my heart could handle the stress."

I paused to take another sip of my tea. It appeared as though Minato was blushing slightly, although it could have just been warm in the apartment. "There will probably be additional rules added depending on how long you stay here, but we can deal with that later."

Though there may have been more I could have added I felt that the rules I had lined out where both simple and fair. It wouldn't have been reasonable to present them with a long list of complicated demands to follow, nor would it have been logical to expect them to memorize an overly long list of rules. Keeping things straight forward and simple would make cohabitation easier. Apparently they also agreed because I received no complaints.

"Alright, that takes care of the rules, on to the next order of business." I took another sip of my tea and pondered how I was going to broach the next subject. Although their clothing was, for lack of a better way of putting it, strange I couldn't just blurt out and say that what they were wearing was ridiculous. They would certainly take offense to that. "Since it appears that you may be here for an undetermined amount of time we'll need to pick up some supplies, mainly toiletries and a change of clothes."

I couldn't believe that I was actually suggesting taking these two shopping, but it had to be done. Being in a confined space with two people wearing the same clothes every day would quickly become unpleasant for everybody. I didn't need my apartment smelling like a Magic the Gathering tournament.

"So get your things and we'll head out when you're ready." I stood from the table and went to place my mug on the counter. The time on the stove read 3:26pm so we still had time to get some shopping done. Returning to my bedroom I retrieved my jacket and pulled on my boots. I was the type of person that got chilled easily so I went to the hall closet and grabbed a pair of mittens and a hat. Stuffing them into my purse I stood waiting for Minato and Jiraiya.

Minato arrived wearing a green, heavily padded flak vest over a long-sleeved navy shirt, matching navy pants and toeless shoes. For reasons I couldn't figure out, he had wrapped bandages around his legs which started from mid-calf and disappeared into his shoes. Across his forehead was rectangular, metallic strip etched with some type of geometric design held in place by a strip of cloth.

"Alright, couple things…first loose the head thing," I said pointing at his forehead.

He seemed a bit put out by my suggestion but reluctantly complied.

"It would probably be best if you took off the vest too." I did feel bad for suggesting this since I didn't have a jacket to offer him. Unfortunately, what he was wearing looked suspiciously like a bullet proof vest or worse something a member of the bomb disposal unit might wear. Either way it was likely to draw unnecessary attention from store owners.

To compensate for the vest I grabbed a scarf out of the closet and handed it to him. It wasn't an ideal solution but it was all I could offer. Stepping back I took in Minato's appearance and decided it was passable.

Unfortunately there was little I could do to make Jiraiya's outfit, from the oriental pajama-like shirt to the rectangular wooden sandals, less noticeable. Like I had with Minato I suggested he leave his head-piece behind. Unable to think of any other suggestions I retrieved another scarf out of my closet for him and hoped for the best. His attire was _unusual _and was likely to draw some stares but hopefully little else.

Leaving my apartment I decided we'd start with the easiest thing, picking up the necessary toiletries. Shopping for suitable clothing was likely going to take some time so might as well get hygiene supplies out-of-the-way first. Walking down the relatively quiet Homer Street we arrived at a Shoppers Drug Mart. Grabbing a basket from stack at the entryway I proceeded directly to the oral care aisle , Minato and Jiraiya following closely behind.

Glancing at the wall of toothbrushes I quickly selected two and tossed them into the basket. I wasn't made of money so I was trying to be as cheap as possible. Jiraiya on the other hand seemed fascinated by the electric toothbrushes for kids. There was no way I was buying him an electric Barbie toothbrush.

"This one is cute," he commented, holding Barbie's immovable plastic smiling face to his eye for inspection.

"And it's staying here," I answered back. Even if I wasn't trying to be cheap there was just something immensely wrong about buying a grown man a toothbrush clearly targeted to little girls. Ignoring his attempt at puppy dog eyes I continued to the next aisle . There I picked up a pack of disposable razors and shave gel and tossed them in the basket with the toothbrushes. Down the next aisle I added a bottle of shampoo and conditioner.

I had been so focused on gathering supplies that I hadn't noticed that I had lost Minato. Feeling the first licks of panic race along my nerves I quickly backtracked through the aisles to find him. I didn't hear any sound of a commotion so it seemed unlikely that he was in trouble. I just hoped he had the sense to stay in the store and not wander off on his own.

I found him down the candy aisle calmly inspecting a bag of sour gummy worms. Perhaps he had a sweet-tooth? Finally something I could relate too. "They're not very healthy for you but they do taste good," I commented pointing to the bag.

"I've never heard of candied worms. Are they made from actual earthworms?" he questioned continuing his investigation of the candy.

He was being completely serious. A fit of laughter escaped from my throat before I could suppress it. I put a hand over my mouth in an effort to muffle the sound but couldn't stop the tears now flowing from my eyes. Never in my life had someone asked me such an absurd question while being completely serious. "No…no they're just made to look like worms," I managed through bouts of laughter.

"I don't see what's so funny," replied Jiraiya having followed me, "it was a perfectly legitimate question."

Both men appeared perplexed by my mirth, making me question what kind of food they considered normal if candy-coated worms were a realistic possibility. Eating bugs could be considered normal in some countries though so perhaps it made perfect sense depending on your cultural reference. "Sorry," I answered wiping the tears from my eyes. "I just wasn't expecting to be asked something like that."

There were a few raised eyebrows and more than a couple stares from fellow shoppers and cashiers a like but the rest of the shopping at the drug store passed without incident. There was a moment when the teenaged check-out cashier's eyes widened in surprise before turning to glare at me but I chose to ignore it. Whatever her issue was it wasn't my problem.

One chore taken care of it was time for the next, finding some clothes. Although they could sometimes be surprisingly expensive, my first thought was to try the thrift stores. It wouldn't be the ideal place for shoes but it would be a good place to start for pants and shirts. Finding a thrift store along Granville Street I showed them to the men's section and left them to pick out a few items.

While they were busy doing that I went to go check out what they had for women. There wasn't anything that I needed but there wasn't any harm in looking. Shifting through a rack containing vintage printed t-shirts I was soon approached by Minato carrying what appeared to be a velour tracksuit. There was a reason some things ended up at a thrift store. "Unless you're part of the Sopranos I'm going to recommend putting it back."

Returning the hideous tracksuit to its home on the rack I proceeded to help Minato pick out some more appropriate clothing choices. By the time we were done he had a pair of jeans, a plain long-sleeved, green shirt and a black hoodie. I left him to try them on and went to see how well Jiraiya was faring.

I found him talking to a young man, who looked to be no more than 18, about something called Make-Out Paradise. It was apparently some type of novel he had written and he was suggesting that the young man read it.

"….it's all about the exciting, passionate love between a man and a woman…"

"Hi, could you excuse us for a minute." Not bothering to wait for a reply I quickly ushered Jiraiya away from the adolecent. "Hock your porno in your own time okay," I whispered once I was sure we were out of earshot.

"I am not Hocking pornography," he responded defensively.

"Please, Make-Out Paradise sounds like something that's going to involve lotion and vigorous wrist exercise the way you were going on about it." I was by no means a prude. I had read my fair share of books that described intimate acts between characters; however I did not suggest books to random strangers based solely on the fact that it had sex in it.

After promising that I would read the book, assuming a copy of it existed, I was finally able to get Jiraiya to pick out some clothes. A plain yellow t-shirt, some dark-wash jeans and a fire engine red hoodie.

I cringed a bit when I saw the bill total but quickly shook it off. This was a necessity and could not be helped. Besides, this is what my savings account was for. Well, not this specifically but I did have some funds for unexpected expenses.

With another tasked checked off my list I lead us to the Winners on the corner of Robson and Granville. As we entered the store Jiraiya whispered something about Orochimaru at the sight of the escalators. I had no idea who or what a Orochimaru was. Maybe it was the word for escalator where they were from. Oddly enough the two both seemed uneasy about getting on to the moving staircase. "It doesn't bite," I reassured, "but if you're scared you can wait here. I just need you to tell me what size shoes you need."

Jiraiya bristled at the very suggestion. Apparently one did not accuse a "ninja" of being scared. As if to prove a point he moved past me and stepped onto the escalator. I was going to have to be more careful with how I chose my words. I hadn't meant to insult the man.

Eventually we were all able to get through the trip up the escalator. Now that they saw that it was completely harmless they appeared less anxious about it. Reading the signs I headed towards the one that read "Men's Footwear". Had the weather been warmer their shoes probably would have been fine. Unfortunately, they were clearly not designed for the cold.

"Thank you for all this," commented Minato.

"It's not a problem," I smiled, "if the roles were reversed I'm sure you'd both do the same for me."

"Hmm I don't know," Jiraiya pondered stroking his chin in thought, a playful smirk tugging at one corner of his mouth. "I think I'd be more interested in helping you out of your…."

"Finish that sentence and I swear to god I will castrate you in your sleep." Though I had tried to sound angry I couldn't quiet keep the teasing tone out of my voice. I didn't know him well but I thought that maybe he was merely trying to get a reaction from me. Then again perhaps telling myself that he was only pretending to be a pervert was just wishful thinking.

When we finally left the store they each had a suitable pair of shoes, some socks and underwear and a set of pajamas. It wasn't anything lavish but at least they were now set up with the basics. Pulling my cellphone from my jacket pocket I checked the time. It was 7:05pm. I was going to have to start thinking about what to do for dinner. After all the walking we had done I was tired and in no mood to cook. I did feel a little guilty about spending more money when there was stuff I could make in my fridge, but laziness won out over thriftiness. I would just have to make sure to cook something tomorrow.

"How do you guys feel about pizza?" I asked as we made our way back to the apartment.

The response I received was a twin set of baffled expressions.

"Elemental towns don't have pizza?" I found myself growing increasingly amazed at just how different our cultures must be. Throughout the day things that were normal to me had seemed confusing and bewildering to them. Where ever they were from they apparently didn't have cellphones, cars, or pizza. Not to mention a whole host of other random things. In a way I found myself growing more sympathetic towards them. Adapting to an environment that didn't have your own cultural norms couldn't be easy.

"I'd try it," stated Jiraiya confidently, after I had explained what a pizza was.

Minato seemed a little unsure, but agreed to try it as well.

Once we arrived back at the apartment after pulling off my boots and hanging up my jacket I went to the kitchen to retrieve a menu. I was sort of forcing them to try something they were unfamiliar with the least I could do is give them a say it what toppings were put on it. Handing the menu to Minato for him and Jiraiya to look at I took the Shoppers Drug Mart bag to the bathroom.

I placed the items that were likely to be used right away in their appropriate homes and placed the rest under the sink. It was a little odd to see three brushes in my toothbrush holder instead of one, but I suppose I was just going to have to get used to that for now.

Before returning to Minato and Jiraiya I quickly slipped into my bedroom and changed into a pair of pajama pants. I found them more comfortable for sitting around the apartment than jeans. "Any thoughts?" I asked returning to the kitchen.

Shortly after coming back to the kitchen I was placing an order for a pepperoni pizza with onions and green pepper.

Migrating to the living room I flopped unceremoniously onto the couch. I had been on my feet for hours so it felt really good to be sitting down. Minato and Jiraiya followed me and took up their usual positions on the couch and armchair. I paused in thought. When had that become usual? I shook my head to clear the thought. Overthinking things was just going to make me feel uneasy again. I still wasn't completely comfortable with having them around, but having accepted my responsibilities as host I was starting to warm up to them a little.

**Thanks for reading**


	4. Chapter 4

Pizza turned out to be a disaster. It wasn't because they hadn't enjoyed the unfamiliar food. They had. The problem was that they were both lactose intolerant. Roughly thirty-minutes after we had finished eating Jiraiya and Minato where clenching their stomachs complaining of abdominal pain and nausea.

I felt terrible. Although I had been well aware that lactose intolerance was common among adults it had never occurred to me that it might have been an issue for these two. The only consolation I could offer was that because it was cheese, which contains less lactose, their symptoms weren't as severe as they otherwise would have been had they had another type of dairy.

Unsurprisingly that knowledge offered them little comfort.

Seeing little alternative, I grabbed my things and prepared to head back to the drugstore. Normally something like Lactaid was taken before the ingestion of dairy so I wasn't sure what effect, if any, it would have taken after. It was at least worth a try. I could also pick up some ginger ale and Gravol or some other generic version of dimenhydrinate while I was there. It wouldn't be a cure, but it might help them to feel a little better. "I'm really sorry about this. Had I know I would have decided on something else for dinner."

"What is wrong with us?" Jiraiya groaned. He had shifted out of the armchair and was now lying on his side in front of it, arms crossed over his stomach, the agonized expression on his face speaking volumes of his discomfort.

He definitely wasn't looking for a lesson in biological chemistry, so I kept my response as simple as I could while still answering his question. "You're both what is known as lactose intolerant. Basically what that means is that you don't produce enough of the enzyme lactase, which is required to breakdown lactose. A type of sugar found in dairy products." I still sounded like a medical encyclopedia but at least I had managed to keep the explanation short.

From the looks on their faces it was apparent that my answer had made little sense. Unfortunately I had operated under the assumption that they had the same basic understanding of biology that I did. I hadn't been trying to flaunt my knowledge. It was quite possible that they simply used different terminology and were not able to understand the terms I had used.

"In short, avoid eating dairy."

"Where are you going?" Minato questioned having noticed that I had on my coat. Though he probably wasn't faring any better than Jiraiya he was more subdued in his signs of discomfort. Instead of curling on the ground like Jiraiya he was in a seated position on the couch, a single arm pressed against his stomach. If it hadn't been for the periodic clenching of his jaw I might have thought that he was unaffected.

"I'm just going to the drugstore to pick up some things to help make you feel better," I answered, grabbing my purse and heading for the door. "I'll be back soon."

* * *

Luckily the Shoppers on Homer Street was at least open to midnight, if it hadn't switched to twenty-four hours, so I didn't have to worry about getting there before the store closed. With what little warmth the sun had provided gone the night had become chilly, my breath forming small white clouds as I walked along the silent street. Reaching into my purse I pulled out the wool hat I had left in it and tugged it down over my ears.

A scruffy looking man reeking of Listerine and piss stumbled towards me asking for spare change. Vancouver had a high number of homeless people on its streets so this was not an uncommon occurrence. Though I felt bad for this man with his unwashed appearance and soiled clothing I shamefully ignored him as I walked by. Telling myself that he would likely just go buy more alcohol, or mouthwash since it was cheaper, if I gave him money.

The store was dead so I was able to find the items I had come for quickly. Feeling contrite over having ignored the homeless man I picked up a chocolate bar at the check-out and added it to my purchases. It wasn't much, but at least it would be something to eat.

Passing the same filthy homeless man on the trip back to my apartment I offered him the chocolate bar when he once again asked me for spare change. Though he accepted my offering it did not stop him from swearing at me. Apparently, even homeless people could be jerks.

When I returned to the apartment Jiraiya and Minato were in same positions they had been in when I left. Opening the package of fast-acting, chewable Lactaid I offered them each a tablet. It was obviously more effective when taken before or immediately after eating dairy, but hopefully it would help.

When I was feeling unwell sometimes a noise in the background would help make me feel better by allowing me to focus on something else. What to put on though? I had no idea what their viewing tastings were. _Well I can probably guess what some of them might be_ I thought, glancing over at Jiraiya. That was one particular taste I wasn't going to be catering to.

"If you're still feeling nauseous there's ginger ale for you in the fridge. Not sure if it will help much, but it usually works for me when my stomach is upset."

Nodding in response after thanking me for the tablets the two ninja returned to their silent suffering. I still felt bad, having been the cause of their current condition, but there was little more I could do to help them.

Unable to think of anything to watch I flipped through channels for a while before heading to bed. A movie would just have to wait until another night.

* * *

The following morning Minato and Jiraiya were back to their normal selves. They must wake up at the crack of dawn because when I shuffled out of bed at 8am, eyes blurry, hair a tangled mass, they were already dressed and had their bedding neatly folded. Maybe it was a ninja thing. Offering them each a mumbled good morning I stumbled towards the coffeemaker and started making coffee. Normally I wouldn't be awake this early on a Sunday but I had been woken by a car alarm and couldn't go back to sleep.

"You're quite the sight when you wake up in the morning," commented Jiraiya playfully as he entered the kitchen a large grin stretched across his face. "…but I think you're cuter with your hair is brushed."

"Number of shits given by me right now….zero," I grumbled as I poured myself a mug of steaming brown liquid. When I woke up early I couldn't function without it. Everyone was allowed a vice, caffeine was mine. Adding a bit of cream and sugar I took my coffee and joined Minato at the kitchen table.

Jiraiya soon followed carrying his own mug of coffee.

"I hope you didn't add cream to that," I said pointing to the cup in his hand. There was the option now of taking the lactose tablets, but it would probably be best if they both avoided dairy for a while.

He shook his head in response, obviously just as eager to avoid another round of intestinal distress. I watched curiously as he took his first experimental sip. Coffee wasn't for everyone and I was interested to see what his reaction would be. From the look on his face it was difficult to tell whether he liked the beverage or not. Regardless he continued drinking.

"You can add sugar if you don't like it black."

Feeling a little more alert after a couple sips of coffee I went through the mental task of deciding what to do for breakfast. Normally I would just have a bowl of cold cereal and a banana, but as I had guests it might be nice to make something. I wouldn't be doing this every morning. On the days I had to work they would be on their own for breakfast.

Not wanting a repeat of last night I decided to make cinnamon French toast. "I'll go make us some breakfast." Finishing my first cup of coffee I went back to the kitchen to begin preparing food. I had just finished cracking the eggs into a bowl when I heard my cellphone ringing. Giving my hands a quick rinse at the kitchen sink I went to go answer my phone.

"Hello?" I answered walking back to the kitchen.

"Hey babe"

I wished I had let it go to voicemail.

The blood drain from my face as stomach dropped. This was not a voice I wanted to hear, not now not ever. The voice belonged to Richard. The man I had been dating for over a year before I caught him fucking my former-best friend. That had been ten months ago and I hadn't spoken to him since. "I told you never to talk to me."

"Babe I know I messed up but can you give me another chance?" he pleaded pathetically.

Not that we were on speaking terms any more, but I was guessing that things weren't working out with Cheryl. It was the only reason he would call me out of the blue like this. "No. You lost any chance you had with me when you started putting your dick in Cheryl. Don't call me again," I angrily snapped before hanging up.

Torn between feeling hurt and angry I stood in the kitchen visibly shaking fighting back tears. I couldn't forgive him for what he had done. He had hurt me too much for that, but there was a time when I had loved him. Regretfully there was a part of me that still did.

"Are you alright?"

Hurriedly wiping the tears from my eyes I tuned to see Minato looking at me, a look of concern flooding his bright blue eyes.

"I'm fine," I sniffled, curling my lips into a smile that hopefully wasn't as fake as it felt. "I'll get started on that breakfast…" Turning to the bowl of cracked eggs I busied myself with the task of making French toast, all the while keeping my back to Minato so he wouldn't see the tears that threatened to spill from my eyes. I hated myself. I hated the fact that after nearly a year his voice could still bring me to tears. The bad breakup with Richard was part of the reason I often turned down Pam's attempts to set me up with people.

"You don't seem fine," Minato commented stepping towards me.

My armor was cracking. Overwhelmed with emotion I was going to start sobbing like a baby if he kept asking me if I was alright. "It's nothing. I just got a call from someone I didn't want to hear from."

He didn't seem convinced that it was nothing, but thankfully didn't press me any further. Instead of leaving however, after watching me cook the first couple slices he reached over and plucked the egg-coated bread from my fingers before placing it in the pan himself.

"What are you doing?"

"Helping you cook."

* * *

Although still shaken from my unwanted phone call I had managed to make it through the rest of the morning tear free. After cleaning the dishes and a quick shower we were all seated in the living room about to discuss a serious topic. Just how had these two ninjas ended up in my apartment? I didn't know anything about magical teleportation or theories that dealt with the possibility of alternate dimensions. My area of expertise was in the biological sciences so I wasn't sure what help I could be. For all I knew maybe Scotty had just beamed them in.

Hopefully they had a better idea of what was going on. If we could figure out how they arrived it would increase the chances of figuring out how to send them back. Since this was a highly unusual situation I was going to have to try and forget everything I knew and give in to the impossible.

"Could it have been a ninjutsu of some kind?" Minato inquired turning his contemplative gaze towards Jiraiya.

Eyes closed, hand resting on his chin in thought Jiraiya remained silent for a moment before answering. "It's possible, but who would be powerful enough to pull off such a thing? Something like this would have required an incredible amount of chakra."

"A jinchūriki would have the necessary chakra reserves," Minato offered. However, from the tone of his voice he didn't sound like he found this possibility too plausible.

"Hmm…yes a jinchūriki would indeed have the immense chakra reserves needed for something as powerful as this, but I've never heard of a jinchūriki from any of the Five Great Shinobi Nations that had accomplished such a thing.

_Ninjutsu? Chakra? Jinchūriki?_ I didn't have the slightest idea what they were talking about. All I could do was sit there dumbly as my eyes shifted back and forth between them as if I were watching a tennis match. Wait hadn't Jiraiya mentioned something about ninjutsu before? Didn't it have something to do with fighting, like martial arts or something?

"What about Sarah?" Jiraiya questioned, causing both men to turn their attention on me.

My eyes widened in surprise. What about me? I seriously didn't think that I had been responsible for bringing them here. How could I have been?

"Could she have some kind of ninja artifact capable of bringing us here without her knowing?"

I had to bite back the instinct to immediately say no. Such an artifact could not exist, the logic of my world violently protesting against such a thing being possible. I had to remind myself that we weren't dealing with the logic of my world; we were dealing with the logic of theirs. The rules and truths I had known my entire life no longer applied here.

"Should we search the apartment?" I asked nervously. Could there really be some type of mystical ninja artifact lying around my apartment somewhere?

"Yes, that would be wise…but first," he paused turning his attention back to Minato, "…what's the last thing you remember before coming here?"

"Completing a mission at Rōran…" Minato paused in thought, his facial feature contorted in a look of pure concentration.

"Interesting…," Jiraiya responded, nodding his head in thought.

Had it been this mission to Rōran that had been the cause? "Why is that interesting?" I prodded when Jiraiya continued to stay silent on the matter.

"It's interesting because before I came here Minato had already died."

I felt my eyebrows arch in shock before furrowing in confusion. _What did he mean Minato had already died? _I thought as I glanced over to the man in question. He seemed very much alive to me. He ate, he slept I could see the slight rise and fall of his chest as he breathed. Why was Jiraiya implying that this man had died?

Even more astonishing was the fact that Minato did not seem as surprised by this as I was.

"Whatever is happening here there appears to be some memory loss involved. I can only assume that I have died as well, though the last thing I remember is leaving Konohagakure for the village hidden in the rain."

Just what was going on here? Not only did I have magical-ninja staying with me in my apartment, I had dead magical-ninja staying with me? I felt bile rinse up in my throat at the thought. Racing to the bathroom I knelt in front of the toilet and emptied the contents of my stomach into the porcelain bowl. It was all too much. I was just beginning to accept that they really were magical-ninja, despite the impossibility of such a thing, but now I also had to deal with the fact that they might be zombies as well?

I cleaned up as best I could, and rinsed my mouth with water before leaving the bathroom. Fighting against the compulsion to run away I returned to the living room. Minato and Jiraiya were waiting a look of worry on both their faces, no doubt from having heard me throwing my guts up a moment ago.

To my great relief neither of them asked me any questions about what had happened. It had already been an emotional morning and I felt embarrassed enough without having to explain how the thought of living with dead people had caused me to vomit. I was just grateful I hadn't decided to watch an episode of Walking Dead last night. Who knows what horrors my imagination would be spinning now?

"Uhh…you don't appear…dead?" I whispered anxiously, taking my seat on the couch. I was fighting the urge to throw up again by reminding myself that they were the same two people from before. The same two people I had taken shopping, the same two people I had fed pizza to and the same two people I had just shared breakfast with earlier that very morning. Alright, this was good. I could be calm, I could handle this. _Yeah, in about a thousand years maybe _I thought.

Minato quietly left to the kitchen returning shortly after with a can of ginger ale in his hand. "Could this be some type of reanimation jutsu?" he asked Jiraiya handing me the can. "You mentioned last night that this helps your stomach when it's upset." He answered to my unspoken question.

Now I felt even more embarrassed for my lack of control earlier. Moments ago the very thought that they might be dead had me tossing up my breakfast, yet here he was showing me a bit of kindness.

He had been doing that a lot lately.

"Animation jutsus are rare, but it's not entirely unlikely," Jiraiya replied.

After discussing several more explanations it felt as though they had come up with a dozen possibilities for how they came to be here, but still had no definitive answers. The next step was to search the apartment for anything that might have been responsible. However, unless it had a glowing sign that read "Magical Multi-Dimensional Transportation Device" it seemed unlikely that we would be able to find any conclusive answers there either.

All I knew was that if my apartment was some sort of hereafter for dead, super powered ninja it was definitely time to move.

**Thanks for reading :)**

**Until next time..**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey all, another chapter finally. Sorry it's been so long, I have been busy with assignments and exams for school so I've kind of been ignoring this story.**

**Anyway, thanks for waiting…**

**Enjoy**

* * *

_Ninjutsu? Chakra? Reanimation? Time travel?_ Minato and Jiraiya had tried to explain their theories as to how they might have ended up in my apartment but I was still very much confused by it all. The more I tried to make any sense out of it the more it felt like my brain was collapsing in on itself. Each theory sounded like something out of a Saturday morning cartoon show and not something that could realistically be accomplished within the realm of science as I knew it.

That however was the core of my inability to get my head around this whole situation. Despite my previous resolution to try to adapt to the reality of their world I still found myself clinging to the reality of my own. Beings with magical super powers existed in cartoons, video games and comic books not in the real world was something my mind wanted to hold on to in spite of the overwhelming evidence to the contrary currently living in my apartment.

My personal lack of understanding aside, Minato and Jiraiya seemed to have come to an agreement on a couple of things. The first being that there was definitely some type of multidimensional travel involved. The two worlds we came from differed from each other so greatly that it was impossible for them to be one in the same. The second, possibly more alarming, conclusion that they had both agreed upon was that this was likely a reanimation of some fashion.

Since Jiraiya remembered events that took place after Minato's apparent death it made the possibility that they had been pulled from time rather unlikely. How could Jiraiya have memories of Minato before and after his death if he disappeared after his mission to Rōran?

There was the theory of parallels, where every possible decision could lead to an alternate reality, but that was just too confusing to comprehend. I was already having difficulty understanding this situation enough as it was. Quite frankly the idea sounded like a Star Trek plot line anyway.

Therefore, the current reigning theory was that someone or something had not only reanimated the two of them but had pulled them into another world…mine. This would have been no easy task as it would have taken a great deal of chakra to accomplish. It would be like something only a maximum level mage completely decked out in purple epics could pull off, and even then it was iffy.

Ironically I started to find this whole thing easier to deal with if I looked at it from the point of view of games such as World of Warcraft. Whether or not this was a rational thing to do I wasn't sure, but if it prevented me from sobbing uncontrollably in my bathroom while desperately clutching a wrench I was going to go with it.

At present, _who_ had done this, would be impossible to figure out. Sure, they had theories on this as well but without any evidence it was unlikely they could come to any definitive conclusions. Since the discovery of _who_ had brought them here was an impossibility for the moment, that left us searching for a possible _what_.

The idea that there might be some mystical ninja artifact floating around my apartment was rather alarming to put it mildly. If it was here would it bring more people from their world? That was a disturbing thought. If this mysterious object was in fact found I was getting rid of it, and then I was going to start looking for a new place to live, possibly in another province.

_I wonder if it would work both ways… _Instantly I paled at the thought and quickly pushed it from my mind. I had enough to deal with without worrying if I could somehow end up trapped in their world. A cold shiver ran up my spine at the very idea of it.

Tearing apart my bedroom in search of something that I may not even recognize if I found it, I knelt on the floor and began searching under my bed. We had been going through every inch of my apartment for hours. The only discoveries I had made so far were a couple of knitted sweaters from my Nana gathering dust in the back of my closet. I loved my Nana dearly but they were the type of sweaters that looked like a rainbow had thrown up on some wool. I had worn them at least once to not seem like a completely ungrateful grandchild before tossing them into my closet, never to be seen again.

What did a mystical ninja artifact look like anyway? Or perhaps more importantly, how the hell did it end up in my apartment? I glanced over at Minato who was currently looking through one of my bookshelves. Hopefully he would know if we found it because I wouldn't have a clue.

Since he was still banned from entering my room Jiraiya was busy searching through the living room for the artifact that may or may not be here.

"What do you think this thing looks like? Assuming it's actually here," I questioned to Minato, pulling a storage box out from under my bed.

"I must admit I am not sure myself," Minato replied, a tiny note of guilt in his voice.

"Well, how exactly are we to recognize this thing?"

How indeed. The three of us didn't seem to have the slightest idea what this thing might look like. How were we supposed to find something when we weren't even sure what it is that we are looking for? There was still the possibility that this artifact didn't even exist, and that my apartment was being torn apart and picked through for nothing.

"Ideally we will be able to sense some kind of chakra signature from it. If not then hopefully it will bear some markings as to its intended purpose," he answered while investigating one of the framed photos I had on my bookshelf.

_Chakra signature? _I supposed that made as much sense as anything else, but I'd be lying if I said I understood exactly what that meant. Understanding wasn't really a requirement anyway. All I had to do was look for anything that could potentially be this crazy artifact. It was up to them to determine if it was genuine or how to use it.

"Are these your team mates?" he asked, pointing to a photograph of three smiling people wearing wool hats, and puffy jackets.

"Team mates…?" I questioned curiously. I stood from rummaging through my storage box of summer clothes and made my way over to the bookshelf were Minato was. "Oh," I laughed in response once I recognized the photo. "That's Pam, Mark and myself on a ski trip to Whistler. Definitely not team mates. Pam is a coworker of mine and Mark is her husband."

I placed the photo back in its spot beside a photo I had of Adam and I at casual dinner party. A small chuckle escaped from my throat at the memory of how he had got me to agree to go to that party in the first place.

"What about them?" Minato asked curiously, pointing to another framed photograph positioned on the opposite side of the others.

_Okay what is the obsession with team mates?_ I glanced over to where he was pointing. The photograph consisted of four people, each wearing smiling faces. The tiny looking woman with the long, red hair I immediately recognized as myself. On either side of me were two tall men. One was slightly taller than the other with dark hair and green eyes like mine. The other had lighter, brown hair and friendly chestnut-brown eyes. Behind me was an older man with salt and pepper hair and familiar green eyes.

"That's my dad and my two brothers."

"Oh, they are your family," he answered with a smile. "I thought I recognized a resemblance among you."

"Not to be rude, but perhaps discussions about family and photographs can wait until after we've determined whether or not this thing we're looking for is here."

Not that I minded talking about my friends or family, but the sooner we found this thing the sooner they might be able to return back to their own world. Although I was starting to get used to having the company I was looking forward to have my place to myself once again.

"You're right…sorry," he replied placing the photo back on the shelf.

"Don't worry about it," I calmly responded before returning to the half searched through box of summer clothing.

* * *

As expected the thorough search of my apartment turned up very little. Jiraiya had come across of few items that he quote, deemed worthy of further investigation. I took this to mean that they must look like how one would expect a ninja artifact to appear but lacked the chakra signature or marking they had hoped for. Then again perhaps they were just things that caught Jiraiya's fancy. Who knew?

Curious I went to see what items I had that Jiraiya seemed to think could potentially be what we had spent the entire morning and afternoon searching for. It was a group of three miniature abstract stone carvings. They were a gift Pam had brought back from her trip to Japan, though there was nothing in particular that marked them as being Japanese. There was also a small leaf pendant that I forgot I even had. I couldn't really see any of those items being this magical ninja artifact but then anything was possible.

My stomach growled hungrily after having been ignored for so many hours. Placing the pendent back beside the stone carvings in a shoebox on my kitchen table I caught a glimpse of the time on the stove and was surprised to learn how late it had gotten.

_Time flies when you're trying to solve a mystery I guess._ "Is anyone else hungry?"

"Yes, but let's not have pizza this time," Jiraiya answered.

My lips curled back into a wide smile. Exposing them to that particular foreign food had turned into a rather uncomfortable disaster. I couldn't blame him for not wanting to try it again. Not that I had any intention of letting them eat pizza again while they were here.

"Agreed, no pizza," I laughed.

"How about letting me cook something tonight?" Jiraiya asked.

"Seriously…?" I questioned, biting back a laugh. "I appreciate the offer, but I think I would prefer my kitchen staying in one piece."

"Hey! I'm not that bad a chef you know," he replied back in mock indignation, pretending to be greatly insulted.

"That's not what you usually tell women sensai," Minato teased, joining us by the kitchen. "Don't you tell the opposite to guilt them into cooking for you?"

This was new. Minato, who was usually so calm and serious, was actually teasing Jiraiya? I guess the guy had a playful side to him after all. "Why am I not surprised?" I said, rolling my eyes in artificial exasperation.

"Don't let him near your kitchen," Minato whispered into my ear. "He's a terrible cook."

"I heard that!"

* * *

After consoling Jiraiya's mock bruised ego I decided on making stir fry. I had the ingredients for it, I needed to use up the vegetables and it didn't contain any dairy, making it the ideal choice. Since they insisted on making themselves useful, Jiraiya helped to cook the rice and Minato helped to chop the vegetables.

Shortly after we were all sitting at the kitchen table about to enjoy our group prepared meal.

"Why wasn't your mother in the photo?" Minato questioned inquisitively. Still unfamiliar with how to use a fork he awkwardly stabbed at his food before bringing the skewered pieces up to his mouth.

_Why is he so weirdly focused on learning about my family?_ Next time I was at the Dollar Store I would have to pick up some chopsticks to make eating a little more comfortable for them. Assuming they were still here by then. I nervously pressed my lips together as I thought how best to answer his question.

"I'm sorry," Minato began, his voice laced with concern at my silence. "Did she pass away?"

"No," I answered shaking my head. "She's not in the photo because she walked out on us when I was six. Since then it's just been my dad and my older brothers."

Explaining about my family was always awkward. I hated the looks of sympathy that people gave me when they found out. Their pity was neither wanted nor needed. For a while I had been angry at my mother for leaving. However, I had been happy being raised by my father and brothers. I didn't need her. Besides if she was going to be selfish enough to abandon a husband and three young children without so much as a word I didn't want her in my life.

"Growing up without a mother couldn't have been easy," Jiraiya replied around bites of food.

"There were times when having another female around would have been helpful," I answered the memory of my first period being a prime example. "…but I think my dad did a pretty good job of raising us."

"Indeed he did," Minato replied with a large grin.

This conversation was starting to get uncomfortable. I stabbed at my plate of food with my fork before bringing it up to my mouth, desperate to change the focus of conversation. I always felt awkward when my personal life was the center of discussion. "So…," I began, gesturing to the shoebox at the edge of the table. "What's the plan with them?"

"Ah, it could very well turn out to be nothing, but I have some theories regarding those particular items."

Great, just what this mystery needed…more theories. It took everything I had not to let out an aggravated groan. Not that any of this made sense but it would be nice to have at least one definite answer to the billions of questions I had.

"Care to share them?" I prodded when Jiraiya was not forthcoming.

"In time yes, but first I'd like to consult with Fukasaku and Shima if I can," he answered back before returning to his own meal once again.

Like any good scientist he was working out his theories before presenting them, even still I wanted to reach across the table and slap him. It felt like he knew something and I didn't like being kept in the dark. "Who are Fukasaku and Shima?"

"Talking toads…"

I nearly dropped my fork. _Of course they are._ With multi-dimensional traveling and reanimation I thought I couldn't be surprised any more, apparently I was wrong.

"Talking toads?" I questioned nervously.

"I think they'd prefer to be called great toad sages, but yes they do talk."

Okay let's just throw all common sense out the window and start drinking whackers-aid out of clown shoes. Magical super powered ninja, talking animals what was next a magical-ninja that was half man half plant?

"Can you still contact these toads while being in a different world?"

For rather self-evident reasons neither Jiraiya nor Minato had ever actually tested which abilities they still had and what, if any, they were lacking. Perhaps calling up a couple of talking toads would fall into the lacking category.

"I am not certain, but I will see if I can still summon them in the morning."

"Wait what…? Summon them here?" I choked. I had expected him to try and contact them via some kind of telephone, not bring them directly into my living room.

I would be at work tomorrow morning. Although I was a little curious, admittedly it may be better that I was not home if this particular call was successful. If he could summon them here, to this world, couldn't they summon him to wherever it was they came from?

"If you are successful can't you just get them to bring you home?"

"Hmm an interesting proposal, however the amount of chakra required would be immense. I doubt even they would have the necessary reserves to bring us both back safely."

So it wasn't an impossibility, it just wasn't entirely safe. I would like my apartment back, but I wasn't cruel enough to wish them harm in order to have it. Besides there was one question that had been continually gnawing away at me, if they had already died in their world what would they be going back to? Maybe they were better off staying here; then again maybe staying here was preventing them from finding peace in their afterlife. Assuming they had actually died, which seeing them as clearly being very much alive it was somewhat hard to picture.

"We've done all we can for today I think." I took my empty plate to the kitchen to rinse it at the sink before placing it in the dishwasher. "I say we tidy things up a bit then spend the rest of the evening relaxing watching a movie."

"That sounds like a fine idea," Jiraiya exclaimed, Minato nodding happily in agreement.

Figuring out something the three of us could agree on watching should prove to be interesting.

* * *

"Oh, how about this one?" I heard Jiraiya ask from the living room.

For Minato's silence it didn't appear that he approved of Jiraiya's selection.

As I removed the bag of popcorn from the microwave to pour into a waiting bowl I nearly jumped out of my skin at the deafening sound of thunder clapping. I hadn't recalled the weather forecast saying anything about thunder showers this evening. Oh well, weather forecasts where often wrong. That round of thunder had been frighteningly loud. It sounded as though it had come from inside my apartment.

Ears still ringing slightly from the incredibly loud sound I left the popcorn filled bowl on the counter and headed towards the bathroom. I wasn't in a desperate need for the bathroom but I didn't want to have to get up to pee 20 minutes into the movie.

Rounding the corner I bumped into something solid. Looking up my heart nearly leaped out of my throat. Standing in front of me was a tall man with long, silver-coloured hair, piece of which hung over a familiar looking headband. He had dark eyes, each with a deep line underneath them. His clothing, though somewhat similar to Minato's, was rather strange, the most distinctive feature of it being a single, short white sleeve with red edges.

A terrified scream tore from my throat before a gloved hand wrapped itself securely around my mouth to silence me.

Before the echo of my short scream died Minato and Jirayia appeared in the hallway. They seemed as though they were prepared to fight until they saw who it was that had his hand over my mouth.

"Sakumo?"

* * *

**Haha what did I just do?**

**Again, I'm sorry about the wait. There wasn't a whole lot happening in this chapter, but hopefully it wasn't a complete disappointment.**

**Thank you for the reviews**

**Until next time….**


	6. Chapter 6

"Please," Minato implored "let the girl go Sakumo-san."

Cautiously the gloved hand slipped away from my mouth, the ghostly presence pressing behind me disappearing with it. A heavy silence filled the hallway as the four of us tried to make any sense out of what had happened. The haunting silence that surrounded us was so very unnerving, yet all I could do was stare pleadingly at Minato and Jiraiya for some kind of explanation.

Why was there another stranger in my home?

From their equally stunned expressions it was clear that they didn't have the slightest idea what was going on either.

Why was it that every time I started getting used to these completely improbable, totally impossible situations something new had to turn up? Ever since Friday evening the universe seemed hell-bent on denying me any sense of normalcy in my life. I guess I just had to count my blessings that this new person wasn't hostile, at least for the moment anyway.

"Minato…? Jiraiya…?" the silver-haired man questioned in surprise. "I would not have harmed the girl."

If I didn't know any better I could have sworn I detected a hint of insult in his deep, soothing tone. Perhaps insinuating or inferring that one might intend harm to an unarmed woman was considered offensive to a ninja. Assuming this new individual was one. Then again, maybe I was just reading too much into things.

Quietly the silver-haired man moved to stand between the two magical-ninja and myself, his back to them as he stared down at me with dark, friendly eyes. "I apologise for my action young lady. I trust you are uninjured?"

He seemed genuinely concerned whether he had hurt me in any way. He obviously hadn't caused me any physical harm. I had screamed at him after all, I couldn't really blame him for his response.

"I'm fine," I softly replied. _Yeah if you ignore the heart attack inducing sudden appearance of a total stranger in my apartment…I'm just peachy._

Shock was rapidly melting into annoyance. Although I had nothing personal against this new arrival, it didn't hide the fact that there was yet another stranger standing in my home. I didn't want him here, but it was too late now to start becoming selective over who I allowed to stay and who I forced to leave. I took a deep, calming breath in an effort to alleviate the rising bitterness within me. Though I may not like the situation becoming angry about it helped no one, especially me.

"Where am I? What is this place," he questioned, warily glancing around, his perplexed gaze landing on several objects that decorated my hallway. A table, a decorative bowl, a plant, framed artwork, nothing out of the ordinary.

"You're in Vancouver British Columbia, and _this place_ is my apartment," I offered in rely, knowing full well that this answer would only bring forth more questions.

Perhaps I was being overly cynical, but did they have to act as though my apartment was some bizarre, alien spacecraft that they were abducted into every time? I know they're from a different world and all but my home wasn't that weird…was it?

"Van-coover?" he asked puzzled.

"It's a long story," Jiraiya explained, "Perhaps we'd better sit down."

With an unspoken agreement among us I was soon leading a conga line of tall men back to my living room. Their towering heights quickly reminding me that I was shorter than average. Minato and Jiraiya took up their usual positions on the couch and armchair. The new arrival guardedly surveyed the room before taking a seat on the opposite end of the couch. Although he apparently knew Jiraiya and Minato he was still remaining cautious. Once again I couldn't really blame him.

This was weird and stressful enough for me. I couldn't imagine what it must be like for them, to suddenly have everything that was familiar ripped away. At least on the surface they all seemed to be handling it pretty well. If it were me, I'd probably be putting on an irrational, panic-induced display of epic proportions. The question was had the silver-haired man been brought here the same way Minato and Jiraiya had? I didn't even want to think of the implications of there being multiple ways these ninja were ending up in my apartment.

Hopefully Jiraiya would have some success with his toad friends in figuring out how they were coming here. My apartment was starting to feel pretty crowded.

Mystical dimensional portal definitely hadn't been mentioned on the lease.

"I'll go make us some tea," I politely informed before disappearing into the kitchen.

I grabbed the electric kettle off the counter and filled it with water before plugging it in. While waiting for the water to boil I grabbed a teapot, some mugs, and a couple of teabags out of the cupboard. Since Minato and Jiraiya seemed to like it I decided to make green tea for everyone.

If silver-hair didn't like it he wasn't obligated to drink it.

Making tea wasn't really necessary, but it allowed me a small reprieve from having to deal with my company for a while. I hoped that Minato and Jiraiya could explain all the mystical ninja-magic stuff to him because I certainly wasn't going to be able to. I could answer some questions about this world and tell him the rules for staying here, but that was pretty much it.

The kettle shrieked loudly as clouds of white steam exploded from the spout. I tugged the cord out of the outlet before my ears started bleeding and poured the boiled water into the waiting teapot. Adding a couple of teabags I place the teapot and the mugs on a tray and headed back into the living room.

My new guest watched me with a mix of curiosity and wariness as I placed the tray on the coffee table. I poured three cups and offered them to Jiraiya and Minato before offering one to the silver-haired man. He seemed uneasy accepting the offered mug but seemed to relax slightly when no harm came to the others. As he carefully took an experimental sip I poured tea into the remaining mug on the tray for myself.

"Thank you," he said, his deep voice oddly comforting.

"Sakumo-san this is Sarah," Minato politely introduced, calmly gesturing towards me with his hand. "She's been kind enough to open up her home to us while we are here."

Alright might as well try to make nice. Chances where this guy was going to be here a while. "Nice to meet you," I greeted offering him my hand. "Sakumo was it?"

Nodding in reply he took my offered hand, enveloping it in his larger one, and shook it briefly. "Nice to meet you as well…Sarah," he replied, rolling the foreign name experimentally on his tongue.

"It's good to see you old friend," Jiraiya happily commented, his lips stretching into one of his characteristically large grins. "Sakumo here is known as Konoha's White Fang."

Although Jiraiya seemed to beam with pride over whatever it was that title meant the silver-haired man himself seemed almost embarrassed by it. There was a hint of something else that flashed in his dark eyes, but I couldn't put my finger on it.

_White Fang? _I had no idea what Konoha was but I did recognise the title, White Fang. It was a novel by Jack London, based in the Yukon Territory during the Klondike Gold Rush about a mixed dog-wolf's journey to domestication, or something along those lines. I glanced over at Sakumo, he had the silver hair but he certainly didn't resemble a wolf.

"White fang…? You mean like the dog?" I questioned curiously. Perhaps he had earned the nickname because of his hair.

"Sarah!" Jiraiya replied aghast.

I had to resist the urge to face-palm. How could I forget that they were from another world? Of course they wouldn't have the same authors that are here in this world. They probably had no idea who Jack London was. I'd just compared my new guest to a fictional dog; things were off to a great start. If I kept my mouth shut hopefully I could avoid insulting anyone else for the remainder of the evening.

"White fang is a title Sakumo-san has earned through his work as a Konoha shinobi," Minato patiently explained.

At least his title wasn't Super-Kill-Machine that was a plus.

With the majority of the seating being occupied I started heading back towards the kitchen in order to grab a chair.

"There appears to be a seat available in the middle here," Sakumo informed politely, glancing at the empty seat between Minato and himself, apparently not the least bit offended by my earlier comment.

I stared at him dumbly, each passing second feeling like minutes as my mind warred between being comfortable and not being rude. Sakumo seemed nice enough so far, but I wasn't at all contented with the idea of sitting that close to him, especially after my misinterpretation of his title. However, openly ignoring his suggestion could be taken as a huge insult. I silently begged Jiraiya to trade places but apparently telepathy wasn't a skill he possessed.

Deciding it was probably best not to be rude I reluctantly took a seat on the couch, subconsciously moving slightly closer to Minato to put some distance between Sakumo and myself. Nothing noticeably obvious of course.

"You were saying something about a reanimation jutsu Jiraiya?"

"They are rare, but it seems the most likely explanation…"

I listened quietly as Jiraiya gave a similar discussion to the one the three of us had the other day. Explaining all their theories and discussing how they had reached the dimensional travel, reanimation hypothesis. It didn't make any more sense the second time around, but with magical-ninja making sense was probably a relative term.

As I silently followed the conversation my eyelids started to feel heavy, drooping down until my vision was nearly blocked completely. I snapped them open, blinking rapidly in a futile effort to rejuvenate myself only to have them droop shortly after once again.

Hopefully explaining what we had figured out so far wasn't going to take much longer.

* * *

My pillow was pleasantly warm but felt oddly lumpy, the slightly rough material scratching at my cheek. I was definitely going to have to put a different pillowcase on it later. I didn't remember making it to my bed but perhaps I had just been too tired. Had the sudden appearance of that silver-haired man been a dream? Sleepily I opened my eyes and nearly vomited up my own heart.

Not only was the silver-haired man, Sakumo, very real, I was currently sleeping with my head in his lap. I was mortified beyond belief. Why hadn't someone woken me, or at least moved me? I was seriously thanking my luck that I hadn't been drooling in my sleep as well. I don't think I would have been able to recover from that embarrassment.

"Uhh…sorry," I sheepishly mutter quickly sitting up. I momentarily felt dizzy as the blood rapidly drained from my head at the sudden movement.

"You were not causing any harm," Sakumo calmly replied.

His deep, soothing baritone did little to ease my embarrassment. Thankfully however, he didn't seem at all bothered by my unconscious action.

"It's getting late," commented Minato, "Perhaps we should turn in for the night."

That sounded like an excellent plan, but where was everyone going to sleep? I did have some extra bedding and sleeping bags but I wasn't really equipped for multiple guests. Hopefully they would be okay with sleeping on the floor until we could work something else out.

I glanced around at the disorganized state of my apartment, finding room on the floor might be a little difficult. Some things were going to have to be moved around first. As if reading my mind Minato collected to mugs and brought the tray back into the kitchen while Jiraiya and Sakumo moved the coffee table and armchair back.

_Now you can read my mind?_ I bitterly thought, shooting Jiraiya an angry glare.

While they cleared space in the living room I went to my linen closet to retrieve an extra pillow and sleeping bag for Sakumo. I hadn't been expecting any additional guests so I didn't have any clothes for him to change into unfortunately. Would I end up having to take the three of them shopping? Although it hadn't been entirely unpleasant, it had been hard enough taking Minato and Jiraiya shopping. I couldn't imagine what it was going to be like with a third person. That was a problem that was going to have to wait until another time.

As I made my way back to the living room I felt a little guilty for making two of them sleep on the hard floor. Perhaps I should take a trip to Wal-Mart and see if they had any camping mats, or anything that could help make the ground a little more comfortable.

"Here's some extra bedding," I announced, placing the pillow and the rolled up sleeping bag on the couch. "Sorry that this isn't the most comfortable arrangement. I guess you'll have to fight over who gets the couch."

"Fighting for that seems…unnecessary," Sakumo commented, uncertainty lacing his deep voice.

From the tone of his voice it sounded almost as if he had thought I had meant seriously fight. They wouldn't actually start beating on each other would they? "Uhh…I didn't mean literally of course," I replied laughing nervously.

"If you want more of us to be comfortable there's still room on your bed for one more," Jiraiya happily commented with a lecherous grin while playfully wiggling his eyebrows.

I crossed my arms over my chest and glowered at him. "Not happening…and even if it did what makes you think I'd pick you?" I scoffed.

"Jiraiya-sensai is Jiraiya-sensai no matter what world he's in," Minato nervously muttered, setting up two sleeping spots on the floor.

For the most part Jiraiya's teasing, though typically highly sexual in nature, was pretty harmless. That however didn't mean that I couldn't be annoyed by it, or do a little teasing of my own in return. If I had any more unexpected guests randomly appearing out of the blue I might very well end up having to share my bed with someone. That was an entirely uncomfortable thought. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that.

"I have to leave early for work tomorrow. Would you mind showing Sakumo how things work around here and explaining some of the ground rules while I'm gone? I should be back by 5pm."

"Of course," Minato calmly replied.

"Thank you. I'll leave my cell and work number on the fridge in case you need to contact me."

Hopefully they wouldn't but at least they would have some numbers where they could contact me if there was an emergency or something.

"Thank you for your hospitality," Sakumo politely commented, offering me a small bow.

I could feel a slight blush burning at my cheeks. I appreciated the gratitude but the bowing had been too much. It seemed reminiscent of something out of Japanese culture but I couldn't recall a signal time when someone had actually bowed to me personally. It seemed too…formal.

"You're welcome," I politely responded.

Before an awkward silence could completely saturate the room I turned and headed towards the bathroom to completely my own nightly rituals before turning in for the night.

* * *

The buzzing noise coming from my alarm clock at 6:30 in the morning was a most unwelcome noise. In my sleepy state I had to resist the urge to throw the annoying device across the room and switch the darn thing off before it woke up the rest of the apartment. I wasn't even going to bother with the futile wish that the arrival of a third magical-ninja had been a dream.

Throwing off the covers I shivered at the sudden assault of cold desperately wanting to crawl back into the warmth of my bed. Unfortunately I had to go to work so going back to bed wasn't an option. As quietly as I could I slipped out of bed and made my way to the bathroom to shower.

I showered quickly so the running water wouldn't disturb my guests. Drying off with a towel I pulled on my housecoat and silently made my way back to my bedroom, clicking the door shut behind me so I could change. It was going to be another rainy day according to the weather forecast on my cellphone, so I decided to wear a pair of black dress pants, a white blouse and a green knitted sweater. I would have to remember to bring my rain boots for walking to and from the car. After getting dressed I went back to the bathroom to put on some eye-shadow and mascara so I didn't look like a tired zombie and ran a comb through my hair.

Checking the time it was now 7:10. I would have to eat breakfast quickly if I was going to make it to the lab on times. _Thank goodness for cold cereal_ I thought as I hastily choked down a bowl. Putting the empty bowl in the sink I promptly gathered what I would need to bring, such as an umbrella, my purse rain boots and a change of dress shoes, slipped on my winter rain coat and headed out the door.

The underground parking garage was eerily silent this early in the morning. Thankfully I was well into my practiced routine to bother coming up with horrifying scenarios of being mugged with my over active imagination.

Although traffic had been frustrating at times the drive to work had been uneventful as usual. Before I knew it I was sitting at my desk, starting up my computer for the day. Long weekends usually created a backlog so today was going to be busy.

"Hey there skinny bitch," Pam playful greeted, "how was your long weekend?"

If she was calling me bitch it meant the lab manager wasn't in yet. He frowned heavily on swearing in the lab, friendly or otherwise.

"Fine," I replied giving a non-committal shrug. I wasn't about to tell her that I had spent the majority of my weekend with two men who had suddenly shown up in my apartment, or that a third one had appeared just last night. Pam may be open-minded but I didn't need her jumping to ridiculous conclusions of me having a four-way with them. "How was New York?"

"Fantastic, the shopping there is amazing…and the food, so good. I think I gained 10 pounds."

If she had it wasn't immediately noticeable.

"We ran into this really cute single guy while we were there. I think the two of you would really hit it off…"

I had to bite back a groan. It was too early in the morning to have to deal with Pam trying to set me up with people. "Uhh…you do know we're in different countries right?" I questioned sarcastically.

"Of course I know that," she snapped. "Although it would have been nice if you two could have at least gotten together for a drink."

"I'll just have to live with the disappointment," I groaned.

I know she meant well, but this constantly trying to set me up with any single person she happened to come across was getting tiresome. Beside I was in no desperate rush to be in another relationship anyway. Thankfully she left it at that and didn't bring up the lecture on how I needed to get over Richard and get back into dating again.

As I went about my job of preparing and screening specimens I wondered how things were back at the apartment. Hopefully there would be no huge disasters when I got home. If I wasn't too worn out by the end of the day maybe I would take them all on a quick trip to Wal-Mart.

If Minato's pervious reaction was any indication, having them in the car was going to be…interesting.

* * *

**Thank you for reading.**

**Also thank you for the reviews and the suggestions, I will take them in to consideration.**

**Until next time…**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hello everyone **** I know it's been a while since I last updated. School has been occupying a lot of my time, but I'm finally back with a new chapter.**

* * *

Rain fell in fat, heavy drops watering the already soaked asphalt of the parking lot to the Medical Laboratory building below. The sun had put up a valiant effort, poking through the thick, grey clouds from time to time throughout the day but had finally succumbed to the rain. This rainy weather was quite typical for this time of year and thankfully I had come prepared.

My rubber rain boots squeaked softly against the wet pavement as I walked water gently splashing with each puddle I stepped in. The onslaught of heavy raindrops beat relentlessly against my umbrella, saturating the nylon material. Though the fabric itself had quickly become soaked in the rain my umbrella was still easily keeping me dry. _At least it's not windy as well_ I thought to myself. Trying to remain dry while the wind turned your umbrella inside out was a right pain in the ass.

"This fucking sucks. I can't believe they're actually doing this," Pam grumbled beside me, as we were once again walking through the parking-lot to our cars.

As predicted the long weekend had created a back log of work that needed to be completed, resulting in a long, exhausting work day. I could still see stained cells scrolling past my vision even though I was no longer siting at the microscope. It had definitely been a long day, but hopefully the phantom cells would disappear shortly and I wouldn't wind up mindlessly staring at non-existent histological patterns in my carpet again.

I discreetly turned my head away from Pam in an effort to hide a smirk. Even though I was barely listening to her I heard enough to know that she was still grousing about the changes that had been put into effect. No one was particularly happy with the changes but Pam was certainly the most vocal about her dislike of them.

"And don't think I don't know you're smirking there," she angrily snapped.

A small chuckle escaped out of my throat before I could stop it causing Pam to glare viciously at me. "Oh come on Pam, the break changes aren't that bad," I tried to reason.

With the new break rules we were no longer able to take breaks whenever we chose. Instead breaks were now scheduled and depended on what number you were on the CT and biopsy rotation while on the screening floor. I could understand Pam's frustration over this particular change, but I understood why management had decided to implement it. It meant that the CT or biopsy labs wouldn't have to wait for a technologist because the one that was next on the schedule had gone on a break, something that had occurred quite often under the previous break system.

"Hah, you're not the one who had to take lunch at 11:30," she scoffed, her features scrunching into an angry scowl. Rain pelted against her own umbrella as she glared furiously at the sea of parked cars ahead of us. After a short while Pam shook her blond head, symbolically letting go of her bubbling anger as her lips stretched into a tired smile. "I suppose I just have to get used to it."

It was nice to see the old Pam finally starting to come around. It meant that she would be less likely to figuratively rip my head off at the slightest provocation. Pam was a fun person to be around, but she did have a volatile temper. When she was in a mood it was usually best to keep your distance if possible.

"Tell you what if you get the 11:30 lunch break again tomorrow I'll switch with you," I offered.

"Ha, nice try there ya' skinny bitch, but you're in the prep lab tomorrow."

Pam was right; I was on specimen preparation duty tomorrow so I wouldn't be on the CT/Biopsy rotation list. A lot of people referred to the preparation lab as 'the pit' since it was completely separated from the highly social screening floor, due to obvious safety reasons, but I honestly didn't mind it.

"Right… Any plans for the evening?" I questioned, quickly changing the subject before her bitter mood returned.

Although Pam's idea of fun typically consisted of various bars and a lot of alcohol she didn't usually go out on a week night as far as I knew. However, I had seen her strolling into the lab nursing a hangover once or twice…so perhaps that wasn't always true.

"You mean other than sitting in front of the TV with a glass of wine and a tub of Häagen-Dazs?"She playfully laughed.

That sounded like a fantastic idea, especially given the exhausting work day I had. Unfortunately I had _guests_ waiting for me in my apartment, so curling up in front of the TV and ignoring them when I got home wasn't really a polite option.

"You?" she questioned in return.

"Nothing really," I casually replied, reaching into my purse to fish out my car keys. "Might take a trip to Wally-land to get a few things…"

My newest _guest_ in particular was going to need a change of clothes and a toothbrush at the very least. I also wanted to see if they had some camping mats or some type of padding to make sleeping on the floor more comfortable. I still wasn't particularly keen on having company, but as long as they were staying with me they were my responsibility. No reason not to be a gracious host.

"Whoa slow down there you crazy animal," she teased, throwing her unoccupied hand up in mock surrender. "Don't party too hard; it is a weeknight you know."

A trip to Wal-Mart wasn't exactly the most thrilling thing to do. In fact I often found shopping there to be rather irritating, but in this case it was a necessary evil. I didn't have the time or the energy to visit multiple stores so I had to go with one-stop shopping. With any luck the place won't be a total zoo and I'll be able to get in and out with relative ease.

I rolled my eyes at her in mock exasperation. "We can't all be borderline-alcoholics I suppose," I taunted in reply.

"Too bad," she joked playfully, "We're more fun."

"Whatever," I shrugged.

I paused by my car attempting to get a better grip on my keys that were threatening to slip from my fingers. The effort failed and my keys were soon falling to the soaked pavement before I could successfully stop them.

Thankfully Pam had been focused on unlocking her own car so she hadn't noticed my little clumsy moment.

As I started to kneel to retrieve my keys I felt a sudden rush of air before my keys completely disappeared. I stared blankly at the empty patch of ground, wondering if my vision was somehow playing tricks on me. Thoroughly confused I looked up and nearly yelped in surprise.

Minato stood in front of me, wet blonde hair matted against his head my keys dangling invitingly from his index finger. Despite the fact that his jeans and black hoodie where clearly soaked he didn't seem to be the least bit bothered by the rain.

Snatching my keys from him I hastily unlocked the doors, hoping to get Minato inside before Pam noticed him. "What are you doing here?" I questioned in a harsh whisper.

Ignoring the unnerving fact that I could somehow be easily tracked by these people, there wasn't really a reason for any of them to be standing in the parking lot of the place of my employment, at least not that I could think of. There was food and entertainment in the apartment and I told them that I would be back some time after 4pm so I wasn't technically late yet. Unless…

"Did something happen?" I inquired nervously. "Please tell me another one hasn't shown up."

If there was another stranger in my home I was moving out tonight.

"No no," he replied, his mouth pulling into a large, sheepish grin as he nervously scratched the back of his neck. "It's still just Jiraiya-sensai, Sakumo-san and myself. We were starting to get bored so Jiraiya-sensai suggested I check in on you, and see if you were ready to return yet."

_He better not be sifting through my underwear again._ Last time Jiraiya had been left alone in my apartment he had decided to rifle through my undergarments in the name of research for one of his perverted books. This time however, he wasn't alone. I just had to hope that Sakumo's presence would be enough to stop Jiraiya from doing something like that again.

"I was just on my way home. Now please get in the car before…"

"Who is that?"

_Crap._

Any hope I had of getting Minato into my car before Pam noticed him shattered into a million pieces. Normally she would have been in her car and on her way by now, especially in this weather. However, the sudden appearance of a stranger, a _male _stranger talking to me was too much for her curiosity to resist.

"Uhh…this is," I began, awkwardly fumbling for words. "…a friend of mine."

I honestly wasn't sure what call them, but friend sounded like the best, easily believable choice. It was better than trying to explain that he was some type of mystical zombie ninja from an alternate dimension. Even I still had trouble believing that one.

Pam arched a blond eyebrow at me suspiciously. "He's not another Adam is he? Don't get me wrong I've got nothing against gays, but you need to start hanging around more people you actually have a chance with," she ranted. "Even if it's just for a good lay once and a while." She finished with a teasing wink.

I was officially mortified.

Why was it that whenever someone met Minato they assumed that I am or should be sleeping with him? Sure he was attractive in a way, but I knew next to nothing about the man. For all I knew he was married, homosexual or…into goats or something weird like that.

"Pam!" I shrieked indignantly. "We're just friends."

That was it, Minato was no longer allowed to come searching for me. If for whatever reason they absolutely needed to track me down they could send Jiraiya or that Sakumo guy. At least with either of them I could try passing them off as an uncle or friend of my father's.

"Right…_sure_ you are," she goaded. Opening her driver's side door she stood there for a moment, a large teasing grin on her face. "Well I better get home before Mark starts to wonder what's taking me. You kids have fun."

To my great relief Pam started up her car and pulled out of the parking lot, leaving me alone with Minato. Work tomorrow was going to be an absolute headache, but I didn't want to think about that right now. With any luck Pam wouldn't badger me tomorrow about Minato and what my relationship to him was, but I highly doubted it. Great, just great, if Minato had only shown up a few minutes later I wouldn't be in this mess of having to convince Pam that I wasn't fucking him, now or ever.

"Is there a reason your friends seem to think we're in a relationship?" Minato questioned curiously. Whether he was annoyed or offended by this I couldn't tell. There was no accusation in his tone he simply sounded inquisitive. He was definitely way calmer about this then I was.

"I have no idea," I muttered. Opening the door on my side, I gestured to the passenger side and patiently waited from him to do the same.

"Perhaps if…."

"Just get in the damn car," I grumbled.

* * *

After convincing Minato that my car was not a summons of some kind, neither was I what he referred to as a puppet user controlling a metal puppet I was finally able to coax him into the passenger seat. I don't know what kind of world they lived in but apparently ventriloquist dummies were considered a deadly art form. He still seemed unusually apprehensive but I managed to instruct him on how to put on his seatbelt before shifting my car into drive and pulled out of the Medical Laboratory parking lot. As I drove my usual way home I turned up the heater to help him dry off a little.

Aside from the fact that Minato was clearly uncomfortable being inside the _metal contraption_ the drive home remained pretty uneventful. Traffic was a little heavier than usual for this time of day as a result of the pouring rain so the trip took slightly longer than normal. Even with the added time I was soon pulling into the underground parking of my apartment building. I parked in my designated space before turning off the engine and unclicking my seatbelt.

I looked over at Minato who was still in the passenger's seat a perplexing look of terror and intrigue dancing across his features. He had yet to unbuckle his seatbelt or release the white-knuckled grip he had on the passenger side door. I didn't think I was _that _bad of a driver but then I guess they didn't have cars wherever they're from, so I was taking my familiarity of motor vehicles for granted.

"Do you normally travel like this," he inquired a little shakily.

"Well…my flying carpet was in the shop," I playfully teased. Unfortunately from the look on his face he didn't seem to get that I was joking. "Yes, most people get around with the use of a motor vehicle of some kind."

"Hmm…doesn't seem nearly as efficient."

"Compared to what?"

"Chakra"

Chakra? They had mentioned this before I think; it was the source of their mystical abilities like mana or spell-power or something. They used it for transportation as well? What did they do? Fire it out of their feet at jet-engine velocity like some sort of bizarre Peter-Pan?

"Uh huh…let's just head up okay?"

As much as I would love to continue sitting in my car debating over the efficiency of motor vehicle travel versus magical transportation I really wanted to get into my apartment and change out of my work clothes. It was still early in the evening so the sooner I got changed and moving the better. I was seriously debating leaving them and going to Wal-Mart myself, but if I didn't let them out of the apartment soon they were likely to start going stir crazy. The fact that Minato had come to _collect_ me at work was a pretty good indication of this.

Luckily he didn't seem eager to continue with our current conversation, finally managing to unclick his seatbelt before exiting my car. He silently followed me to the elevators with an unusually practiced ease. As far as I knew he'd never been in this part of the building before but he was walking as though he had travelled through here a hundred times before. It was quite the change from the near borderline panic-attack he seemed to be having only a moment ago. Guess ninja were more confident when their feet were touching the ground.

The heat from the car had helped Minato to dry off a little. Water was no longer dripping off him, but he was still unmistakably wet. Given the common occurrence of rain perhaps I should add some extra umbrellas to my shopping list. If anything it wouldn't hurt to have a spare or two around for when I inevitably lost mine.

"The weather here reminds me of Amegakure," he casually commented, as we stepped into the awaiting elevator car.

I pressed the number seven button, watching it light up before turning to him with an eyebrow arched in confusion. I had no idea what Ameg…whatever was I could only assume it was the name of a town from where they were from. "Huh?" I questioned rather ineloquently.

"The village hidden in the rain," he attempted to clarify.

It didn't help my understanding any. Their villages where hidden? How did that make any sense? At least I now understood why the current weather here was reminding him of this Amegak-rain place.

"I see," I muttered in mock understanding. I didn't really comprehend what the significance of a _hidden village _was, but trying to figure it out was liable to start giving me a headache.

At some point I was going to have to make an effort to try and understand the various perplexing elements of their culture, but tonight wasn't going to be that time. For now I just had to pretend like I vaguely understood what he was talking about. As we approached my apartment door I silently pleaded with any entity that was listening that things were just how I had left them this morning, and I wasn't about to enter an apartment that had been completely destroyed beyond recognition. I hadn't asked Minato what Jiraiya and Sakumo were up to because frankly I wasn't sure that I wanted to know.

"We're home," I called out into the empty hallway as we entered into my apartment.

I proceeded with my usual routine of hanging up my coat and placing my keys in the awaiting decorative bowl before heading further in the apartment to figure out where Jiraiya and Sakumo where.

"You're finally back," Jiraiya happily commented stepping in the hallway from the kitchen.

He rapidly approached me a large grin on his face. Before I could grasp what was going on Jiraiya wrapped his arms around me and lifted me off the ground in a near bone-crushing hug. He continued to hold me off the ground for a few more seconds before putting me back down and ruffling my air. From his reaction one would think I had been gone for years instead of only a few hours.

"What the hell was that for?" I questioned in fake annoyance as I tried to smooth out my now messy, tangled hair.

"Just missed you I guess," he jested teasingly.

From the time I had spent in Jiraiya's company I had quickly learned that many of his actions, such as the bear-hug greeting from moments ago, where often unpredictable and spontaneous. Any attempt at trying to understand or rationalize such actions was often an attempt in futility.

"Anyways….," I began changing the subject, "Where's Sakumo?"

The most recent addition of my mystical-ninja _guests_ had yet to make an appearance. Not that I expected any of them to rush out and greet me like excited puppies whenever I returned home. If not for Minato's mention of him earlier I would have considered that perhaps Sakumo's arrival last night had been nothing more than a dream. Since neither Jiraiya nor Minato had made any vocalizations about Sakumo somehow returning to their world I had to assume that he still remained within the apartment somewhere.

"I'm here," I heard deep, soothing male voice call from my dining area.

Moments later a tall man with dark, friendly eyes and long silver hair held back in a ponytail stepped through the kitchen and joined us in the hallway, a steaming cup of tea in his hands. Though the deep lines under each eye made him appear older I found his age difficult to determine. At a guess I would say that he was somewhere between Minato and Jiraiya but I could have been mistaken.

"I trust your mission was successful," he politely commented, taking a casual sip of his tea.

_Mission? _What in the world was he going on about? As far as I could recall I had said nothing about a mission, video game related or otherwise. I stared at him in uncomprehending silence, my facial feature no doubt accurately portraying the confusion I felt. Slowly I turned my gaze over to Minato and Jiraiya hoping for an explanation, but none was forthcoming.

"I'm sorry what?" I questioned.

"You mentioned last night that it was necessary for you to leave for….work. Since you have returned I assume that your mission has been successful," he offered as way of explanation.

Obviously ninjas were unfamiliar with the concept of an eight-hour work day. Was it always necessary for them to see a job or _mission_ through to its successful completion before being allowed to return home? If we were required to share similar rules here I doubt I would ever be allowed to return home.

How did one determine the successfulness of a work day spent in the medical labs anyway? Did one go with how many specimens where properly processed, how many lesions where successfully detected, or was simply being paid success enough? Thoughts of what a mystical-ninja might consider to be a successful work day were rapidly making me feel uncomfortable. Alternate dimension or not ninja wasn't exactly a friendly career choice. The last thing I needed was to start putting serious thought into what these three people in my home were actually capable of.

"Depends on what you mean by successful I suppose. However, successful or not as soon as 4 o'clock rolls around my work day is done," I replied.

Confusion briefly danced behind his dark eyes before he simply shrugged in response taking yet another sip of his tea. There was obviously quite a significant culture difference between us so a lack of understanding of cultural norms was going to be inevitable from time to time. I just had to hope that such lacks in understanding would not yield any significantly negative results.

"Anyways, I'm going to quickly get changed and then head out to the store for a few things," I began to explain, glad to be changing the subject and hopefully put an end to the awkward tension that seemed be surrounding us. "Would any of you like to come with me?"

"Another shopping trip huh?" Jiraiya questioned with a large, goofy grin. "Sure I'm in."

Jiraiya's response came as no surprised. I had expected that the white-haired man would have been rather eager to get out of the apartment for a while. Not that he wasn't free to leave whenever he chose no matter how much I may dislike the idea of any of them exploring the city unsupervised. Had any of them truly wanted to leave it's not like I could have stopped them anyway.

Minato grinned and nodded in reply. His slowly drying clothing couldn't have been the least bit comfortable but he made no complaint. He could easily change into a pair of pajamas or even his old clothes and still not be wearing the weirdest outfit seen at Wal-Mart, but I suppose putting his wet clothes in the drier for a while would probably be the best choice.

I quickly snagged a towel from the bathroom before returning to toss it at him. Minato caught it easily and started using the towel to dry off his head. I probably should have offered him a towel sooner but he made no comment about it.

"You can put your wet clothes in the drier for a while. Just come and knock on my door when you are dressed again," I offered, heading towards my bedroom. The last thing I needed was to see a mostly naked Minato strutting around my apartment.

* * *

While I was waiting in my bedroom I had changed out of my work clothes into a pair of jeans and a long-sleeved shirt, striped in two different shades of blue. It was starting to get a little chilly so I added a purple hoodie for extra warmth. Hopefully either Minato or Jiraiya could remember how to work the drier and I wouldn't be waiting too long. In retrospect I probably should have shown Minato how to use that particular appliance again before disappearing into my room. If they were truly stuck trying to figure out how to work the drier I had to assume one of them would let me know.

As I made a mental list of everything I planned on getting at the store there was a gentle knock on my door. _Ah that didn't take too long._ Opening my door revealed Sakumo patiently waiting on the other side. This was somewhat surprising. Given that we were still rather unfamiliar with each other I had expected it to be either Jiraiya or Minato knocking on my door.

"Everyone's decent?" I questioned, before carefully exiting my bedroom.

Sakumo arched a silver eyebrow at me in response. His expression was eerily similar to that of my own father when I was being overly cautious about something. Perhaps such a characteristic came with the territory of being a father? It was difficult to picture anyone that chose being a ninja as a career also being a parent but I supposed it was possible.

"Will you be joining us," I asked as I made my way to the hall closet were Jiraiya and Minato were already waiting.

Although I was now curious to learn whether or not Sakumo had any children now was not the time for such personal questions. Besides bringing up such a topic may only serve as a painful reminder of what he may have left behind.

After a reluctant pause he nodded in reply. "I am interested in seeing more of this village that I find myself in."

I had to hold a hand over my mouth to cover the grin that was forming. They always seemed to be using the term village to describe places where people lived. Did these people not have cities where they were from? It wasn't overly important I just thought the idea of seeing Vancouver as a village rather amusing.

After retrieving my coat, rain boots, umbrella and purse I managed to herd my three ninja guests towards to elevator with relative ease. Sakumo seemed the most surprised when the elevator doors chimed open to our floor, apparently never having witnessed such a thing before. Once again it was too easy to take my everyday norms for granted. Perhaps it would have been better if we had taken the stairs.

Like Minato and Jiraiya had done before Sakumo was able to remain relatively calm despite the obvious uncertainty he currently had about the world that surrounded him. It was amazing how quickly these men could adapt to an unfamiliar world, or at least keep their blind panic at being in a foreign place under control. I doubted I could be as calm if the situation was ever reversed.

As I lead them through the underground parking-lot towards my car my cellphone starting ringing demanding attention. Not expecting any calls I reluctantly pulled the device from my pocket, hoping that it wasn't Richard. Hearing his voice was not something I wanted to deal with tonight.

"Hello," I answered cautiously.

"Hey there, how's my favorite sis?" the familiar cheery voice on the other end replied.

A wave of relief washed over me. This wasn't Richard; it was my eldest brother Michael. He was currently living up in Toronto with his girlfriend Jennifer, where he had a financial advising job at The Royal Bank. Michael always did have a head for numbers. However, we normally spoke through Skype on the weekends so I was curious why he was calling me long distance on my cell phone.

"Unless dad has some secret life that I am unaware of I'm you're only sister Michael."

"Oh right trust the science geek not to take a complement," he teased good-naturedly. "I'm going to be in town Thursday and I was wondering if you'd have time to meet for dinner?"

"Hmm…I'm sure I could probably manage that." Switching my phone to my other ear and holding it in place with my shoulder I pulled out my keys and unlocked the doors to my car. "Where did you want to go?"

"I'm thinking Sushi? I'll meet you outside your lab building after 4pm?"

"Alright sounds good."

"See you Thursday. Oh, and Sarah don't forget to call dad, you know how he worries."

There was a soft click on the other end before the line went dead. Pressing the symbol of the red phone to end the call on my end I put the device back in my pocket. "Sorry about that," I offered to the ninja patiently waiting around my car.

It would be good to see Michael again, hopefully my _guests_ wont make visiting with him too difficult.

* * *

The next ten minutes were spent doing something I never would have imagined having to do. Convince a pair of grown men that my car was not a dangerous threat of some kind. With Minato's help I was eventually able to persuade them that the _metallic beast_ wasn't going to attack or trap them in some way. Finally after explaining about the concept of an inanimate object and the basics of how an internal combustion engine worked they finally got into the vehicle. Minato and Jiraiya sat in the back while Sakumo took the passenger seat.

I would have preferred Minato or Jiraiya taking the front seat, as I was more comfortable with them, but given how long it had taken to actually get everyone into the car I wasn't going to start suggesting that people change spots.

"What are we acquiring tonight, more clothes?" Jiraiya calmly asked as he fiddled awkwardly with his seatbelt, the function of the foreign strap of material apparently lost on him.

He could twist and squirm as much as he liked, as long as any of them were in the car while I was driving they were wearing seatbelts. Not that an accident was likely, but I didn't need any of them flying through my windshield on the off-chance that one did occur.

"Among other things, yes," I answered as I pulled out of my parking space. "Sakumo will need some toiletries and a change of clothes for starters."

Said silver-haired man suddenly turned to me a look of utter surprise on his face. "I don't want to impose…."

"Don't worry about it. Making sure you guys all have at least one change of clothes and a toothbrush is going to be a favor to everyone."

If it was a choice between spending some money or living with someone who wore the same clothes day after day and didn't brush their teeth I'd choose to spend the money. Besides the sooner I got him out of his ninja, one-white-sleeve with red triangles outfit the better. Not that I expected anyone to care what he was wearing, but if someone asked I'd just tell them he was cosplaying for a party.

"This method of transportation is not as efficient," Jiraiya commented from the back seat.

I had to resist the urge to slam my forehead into my steering wheel. Alright so a car wasn't the best mode of conveyance, but did they have to bring it up every time? Not all of us had magical super powers at our disposal to use to use for getting around.

"So I've been told," I sighed. "However, this is the best method of transportation that I have."

"The ninja in your village have not learned how to control their chakra?" Sakumo questioned seriously.

_The ninja in my village? _I nearly choked on my saliva trying to prevent myself from laughing. It was readily apparent that ninja was the most common career option wherever they were from, but it certainly wasn't a viable option here. Anyone prancing around claiming to be a ninja here was likely going to end up occupying a room that had padded walls or wind up on some heavy, anti-psychotic medication.

"Don't have ninja…so…no," I commented dryly.

"What?!" they all cried in unison.

Were they honestly that surprised? Minato and Jiraiya had been all over downtown Vancouver and had not witnessed a single person creating energy balls, or blinking from location to location. If that wasn't enough my lack of understanding of any of their ninja terminology should have been a pretty big hint that ninja were not a common thing here.

"What do you mean you don't have any ninja here? How do you defend yourselves?" Sakumo questioned with great concern.

"Umm…we use the police or military…I suppose, depending on the situation." I responded, increasingly eager to end this current topic of conversation. Not that I could discuss defence strategies even if I wanted to.

"If you're interested I'd be willing to show you how a ninja gets around," Jiraiya offered with a playful wink.

"Don't worry Sarah, it's perfectly safe," Minato attempted to reassure.

"Great," I replied in a slightly cynical tone.

This was going to be an interesting trip indeed.

* * *

**Some terminology: **

**Prep Lab – preparation laboratory **

**CT - computed tomography**

**Thanks for reading.**

**Things are still crazy busy so unfortunately it may be a while before I'm able to update again.**

**Until next time… **


	8. Chapter 8

**Hello readers,**

**Thank you for your patience. I know it's been a while but I've finally returned with a new chapter for this story. **

**I'm having a lot of fun writing this but unfortunately I'm not that knowledgeable on the Minato, Jiraiya and Sakumo characters (Sakumo in particular) so I apologise if they're OOC more than usual.**

* * *

As we continued on route to the store Jiraiya happily explained the process of ninja travel, which seemed to mostly revolve around the movement and focus of chakra. To be honest it all sounded completely implausible. However, ever since meeting these mystical-ninjas _implausible_ was starting to become a regular part of my vocabulary.

"I assure you Sarah, you'll be perfectly safe," Jiraiya assured with a grin.

Somehow I didn't feel reassured. The idea that human beings could travel at speeds equivalent to that of a car through the use of some type of mystical ninja magic was far beyond what my logical mind was willing to comprehend. Therefore images of either being horribly injured or horribly embarrassed kept alternating through my mind.

However, their methods, regardless of how peculiar they may seem to me, obviously worked from them so perhaps I shouldn't immediately dismiss the idea as a completely ludicrous impossibility.

With the necessary background information on the locomotion of magical-ninja apparently covered the conversation quickly turned back to the subject of Vancouver's lack of shinobi, a fact that seemed very disconcerting to my unexpected house guests. Sakumo in particular seemed the most alarmed to hear the news regarding the city's lack of ninja guardianship.

Apparently not having ninja with magical super-powers to protect and sustain your _village_ was a pretty big deal. Making me seriously question what sort of world they lived in if the majority of their defense and economy depended on what basically boiled down to what could be considered human-weapons for hire.

"What if an enemy nation were to invade…," the silver-haired man question, his voice flooded with concern.

Images of legions of armored warriors laying siege on a castle was ironically the first thing that came to mind. Probably not the type of assault he was referring to. Was invasion a real possibility for them? It wasn't entirely within the realm of the impossible here either, however most citizens didn't activity spending a great deal of time worrying about the likelihood of such a possibility.

After Sakumo had got the proverbial ball rolling they started firing questions at me in rapid session, relentlessly hounding me for information on the subject.

"Who protects the daimyo?"

"What about the Hokage…?"

"How could the people of this village allow themselves to remain so…unprotected?"

"Could you not offer to pay for protection for an allied village if your village doesn't produce any shinobi of its own? Surely you must have something that could be traded here."

_Hokage? Is that even a word?_

Ever since learning that the economy, not to mention safety, of the _village _of Vancouver was not entirely dependent on shinobi the three ninja-wizards in my car just seemed to refuse to get their heads around the idea. I might as well have told them that the city was protected by candy people made from caramel toffee armed with silly guns that fired magic beans. Somehow that would probably have been less surprising to them.

Not that there wasn't any appeal to being a ninja, I think nearly every child wants to be one at some point. However, a country run by ninja just wasn't practical. If any nation were to proclaim that they were henceforth going to rely on ninja to sustain their economy and defend their borders they would likely be laughed at by all other nations. Ninja were mercenaries from feudal Japan during the warring states era specializing in espionage, sabotage, infiltration and, if need be, assassinations. _Not exactly the poster-boys for peace or diplomacy. _They weren't something used to construct and sustain a country.

"Not that I'm a reigning expert on the subject, but if someone or something were to invade I seriously doubt anyone, anywhere would be saying…_gee sure wish we had some ninja_," I contemptuously explained.

Briefly I entertained the thought of the military, Canadian or otherwise, enlisting "ninja" for secret, covert operations and immediately began chuckling to myself. What a preposterous idea. What was next, finding The Shredder or Snake Eyes to fill the role of mission commander?

Then again these guys weren't exactly the typical ninja that I knew of from history, unless the history books forgot to mention the part where they developed superhuman powers.

"I don't see how this is funny," Sakumo replied with increasing concern.

"Really…? You ought to try seeing it from my point of view then," I responded between chuckles.

Momentarily holding my breath I roughly bite my lower lip in an attempt to stop the giggles from spilling out my throat. Not only was it incredibly inappropriate to laugh at the expense of my three guests, it also wouldn't be good for my vision to become blurry with unshed tears of mirth while I was driving.

"Well…what does the daimyo have to say about this? Surely he must have some concerns" Jiraiya questioned curiously.

"Considering we aren't in 10th to 19th century Japan I'm going to go on a whim and say, nothing…because there isn't one."

It was true, unless my current understanding of politics had been grossly misinformed, such a person did not exist.

Not that I was particularly well versed in Japanese history, but my understanding was that a daimyo was a type of territorial lord second only to the shogun, or something along those lines, although I could have easily been confusing my knowledge with some fictional book or movie. Even if they were originally from Japan a daimyo hasn't existed for well over a hundred years… Just where the heck where this people from?

After circling around the parking-lot a number of times I finally managed to find an empty spot that wasn't reserved for someone disabled. It was probably the furthest I could be while still technically being in the _customer parking area_ but at least it was a spot. The store was surprisingly busy for 6:30 on a Tuesday. This did not bode well for my hope that this would be a simple, none hectic shopping trip. Sometimes I forget why I avoid coming to Wal-Mart but luckily the store is always quick to remind me.

Unbuckling my seatbelt I grabbed my purse and stepped out of the car, my three passengers easily mincing my movements. Though they still seemed slightly apprehensive they were rather quick learners and no one would have guessed that none of them had been inside a car before today. Locking the doors to the vehicle I started navigating my way through the parking-lot towards the brightly lit front entrance, Minato, Jiraiya and Sakumo easily following at my heels. Since our destination was fairly obvious at this point my short legs quickly proved too slow for the taller ninja and I soon found myself flanked on either side by Sakumo and Jiraiya with Minato bring up the rear. Whether he remained behind because the two ninja beside me made passing difficult or Minato simply thought that passing me entirely would have been rude I didn't know.

Walking between my silver-haired and white-haired _guests_ I was astonished by just how short I actually was compared to them. Heck, the top of my head didn't even reach either of their shoulders. I felt like a hobbit walking among elves, the Tolkien kind, not the North Pole kind.

One might think that a short stature was a family trait, and it is on my _mother's_ side. Luckily for both my brothers they took after our father. _Lucky bastards._ Not that I have a problem with being short, I am what I am after all, but sometimes it would be nice to be able to get something from a high shelf without needing to get a chair.

As we continued towards the front entrance in comfortable silence I began to ponder over the strange conversation we had in the car and how ninja seemed to play an integral role in their society. The idea of mercenaries being not only the foundation but the mechanism for sustaining a civilization was certainly an odd concept. Our two cultures were truly different indeed. Taking that into consideration I was amazed at how quickly they seemed to be adapting. Perhaps the ability to cope with and rapidly adapt to change was a required skill for magic-ninja.

Though with the cultural differences there were bound to be some misinterpretations and misunderstanding on both ends from time to time. That just couldn't be helped.

As I was mulling over the conversation in the car I went further back to when I had first arrived at the apartment and thought of how strange it was that Sakumo had referred to my returning home from work as having completed my mission. It sounded like such a serious statement to a final, climactic achievement which seemed pretty weird, given that it was just…work. Then again he may have simply used the term the same way someone might use the terms, aim, errand, assignment or job, so the misunderstanding could be entirely based on my own interpretation. _Ugh, anyone who says anthropology is a breeze needs to be slapped._

Snapping back to the present I noticed that Sakumo seemed unusually tense, his dark eyes methodically scanning the parking lot. He wasn't exactly radiating an unfriendly '_look at me wrong and I'll cut you_' vibe but he certainly seemed a lot more wary than either Minato or Jiraiya had been. Both of the aforementioned ninja were currently glancing among the sea of parked cars in what could only be described as passive curiosity, compared to Sakumo's deliberate scrutinizing.

Being magical-ninja themselves Minato and Jiraiya could very well have been just as cautious as Sakumo, but with them it didn't seem quite so obvious.

"It seems unlikely that there is any danger here, but I will move on ahead to make sure," Sakumo's deep voice stated, not a single trace of anxiety evident in his tone.

I was so completely floored by his sudden statement that all I could do was offer a shallow nod in response. Checking from any danger in the Wal-Mart parking-lot, seriously? I was pretty sure he wasn't referring to pushy shoppers or runaway shopping carts either. With a great amount of restraint I refrained from making some mental smart-alecky remark about super powered villains. Given the luck that I've been having lately such a preposterous thing would likely become a reality.

Seemingly satisfied with my minimal response the silver-haired man returned the nod before disappearing in a flash of movement that was nearly impossible for my eyes to follow. No human being should be able to move like that. If this had been a cartoon I would have expected to see a dust cloud shaped like him. Fortunately the sun was setting and the parking-lot itself, though full of cars was not loaded with people, so his inhuman speed didn't set off a symphony of high-pitched screams.

I could only hope that the three of them could manage to put on some semblance of _normalcy_ while they were actually in the store, because there was no way in hell that I could explain away their magic abilities in a crowd.

"Okay…that was a little weird," I commented in a low whisper.

"Ha-ha," Jiraiya joyously laughed in response. "That's Sakumo for you, he's a truly exceptional shinobi but the man does have difficulty relaxing at times. His sense of humor is not too great either now that I think about it."

"Jiraiya-sensei, there's no harm in being a little cautious, and considering the conflict that Sakumo-san has recently left his actions are understandable," Minato calmly defended, easily moving forward to fill the gap the silver-haired man had left.

Minato had made a valid point. None of them had asked to be here so if Sakumo felt more comfortable by checking for danger what was the harm? To me it was right up there with checking the parking-lot for unicorns but to-each-their-own I guess.

"Conflict?" I questioned curiously.

Not that I was surprised that a mystical-ninja might have seen a battle of some kind. Ninja weren't exactly known for handing out lollipops to school children. Why did this particular conflict make the silver-haired man's actions understandable? After all Minato and Jiraiya where magic shinobi as well so they've likely seen their share of fighting and they've never used it to justify their actions.

Jiraiya remained silent for several seconds before a long sigh escaped past his lips. "During the time Sakumo came from…our village had been at war…" Jiraiya sorrowfully explained.

Glancing over at Minato I noticed that his eyes were cast down to the pavement below, the grief unmistakable in his features. Whatever had happened during that time period of their history it obviously didn't hold a lot of happy memories for them.

"It was a bitter conflict and hostilities lasted for many years," Jiraiya explained, momentarily pausing to gather his thoughts. "You have to understand something Sarah, for us that war ended years ago but for Sakumo it ended when he arrived here, so don't be offended if he's overly….err…alert at times."

"Especially when outside the safety of the apartment," Minato quietly added.

That made a certain degree of sense. The apartment, though strange to him, was a controlled environment that currently housed more familiar faces than unfamiliar ones. Of course someone who had been recently fighting would still be prepared to have danger coming at him from all angles when out in an unknown area.

Despite his imposing stature Sakumo had such a gentleness too him that I never would have suspected that he came from such a violent time in their world. There was nothing about him that made him come across as weak, not in the slightest, he just didn't immediately scream battle hardened soldier. War is an ugly thing; I couldn't imagine what one would be like fought with crazy super powers. No wonder he seemed so greatly concerned over Vancouver's lack of _protection_. I actually felt kind of bad for laughing earlier.

"Can I ask something?" I inquired meekly, randomly changing the subject, "are the people in your world familiar with an eight-hour work day?"

Minato held a fist to his mouth pretending as though he was trying to stifle a cough, but he wasn't fooling anyone. Jiraiya on the other hand simply arched a white eyebrow at me, his expression clearly stating that he thought me simple in the head as he laughingly scanned me for damage.

"Of course we are why wouldn't we be? Although not everything can consistently be scheduled and not everything runs on an eight-hour time frame we still have the same concept of a regularly scheduled work day. It just doesn't always apply to everyone. Why do you ask?"

"No reason in particular, I was just curious."

So it had been a misunderstanding. Well I felt stupid, that would teach me for assuming I knew anything about where these people were from. I had easily assumed that a culture was without something as basic as regularly kept schedules, no matter the context, all because of the misinterpretation of a single word. Well it was a damn good thing my life wasn't currently dependent on my accurate interpretation of the culture from their world.

If Jiraiya knew which point in their timeline Sakumo came from did that mean that the silver-haired man had already told them earlier or…had Jiraiya been there when he had died? Meaning like Minato and Jiraiya Sakumo was some type of reanimated mystical-ninja zombie. _What the hell is up with dead people from another world resurrecting in my apartment?_

"He's dead in your world too isn't he," I quietly questioned, though I already suspected what the answer was.

A nearly palpable sadness suddenly seemed to blanket over the three of us at my softly spoken question. Silence hung heavily in the air before Jiraiya offered me a grim nod in reply, remorse all but bleeding from his eyes.

There was clearly something different to the way Sakumo had met his end. Perhaps he survived through the war only to fall victim to an illness?

If what Jiraiya said was accurate and Sakumo did in fact come from a particularly brutal period in their history then could that mean that he was possibly suffering from a type of post-traumatic stress syndrome? I had no idea of the details of what actually went on but how could someone see active combat and not have some traces of the syndrome? It couldn't just be my delicate sensibilities that had me worried about such a thing. I definitely was not qualified to help an individual with this condition. I blanched as my thoughts continued further, my feet rooting themselves to the ground. Maybe Sakumo, despite the odd cautious, scouting behavior, wasn't as mentally balanced as he initially appeared. What if something triggered him into an episode and he started killing people thinking they were the enemy?

Completely lost in my own rapidly spiraling thoughts I gave a startled jerk when a large, male hand gently fell on my shoulder before giving it a reassuring squeeze.

"You can relax; Sakumo is a skilled warrior, not a thoughtless killer. He won't needless harm anyone," Minato calmly explained, apparently having read my thoughts.

I glanced over at the blond beside me, a reassuring grin stretched across his face but his eyes still held a hint of sadness, a testament to what his companion must have gone through. Minato was right; if Sakumo was going to go berserk any time he encountered something abnormal he would have done more than just gently hold his hand over my mouth when he first arrived. Not that snapping in Wal-Mart wasn't a distinct possibility, heck I wanted to punch a few shoppers myself sometimes. However, I wasn't a psychologist nor did I have any experience living in a violent environment such as they had, so I would just have to trust that Sakumo was in control, though I could hardly fault him for being a little more alert and defensive than either Minato or Jiraiya had been.

Before we left the shelter of the parked cars said silver-haired man returned, his sudden arrival scarcely making a sound. I gave a startled shriek in surprise, my hands instinctively flying up to cover my mouth in order to muffle the embarrassing sound.

Sakumo glanced down at me, an apologetic look in his dark eyes. "I did not intend to frighten you."

"She's fine," Jiraiya replied, ruffling my hair teasingly.

"All clear?" Minato asked.

Sakumo nodded in response.

"Look guys, can we just get this over with? It's been a long day and I don't know about you but I'm starting to get hungry."

With the silver-haired ninja easily leading the way through the sea of parked cars we soon found ourselves entering through the automated front doors into a florescent-lighted world of cheap shopping. This definitely wasn't my favorite place. The fact that they felt the need to cram the aisles with as much crap as possible making them difficult to navigate was extremely irritating. However, despite my grumbling it was convenient and I wasn't exactly blessed with unlimited funds so the cheaper this shopping trip was the better.

I made fairly decent money at my job in the lab, but I was nowhere near being financially stable enough to support my three house guests indefinitely. Not that I could just kick them out on the street but if it started looking like their stay in this world may be more long-term they were going to have to start looking into getting jobs. That was a frightening thought. What kind of job would a resurrected magical ninja get when in a regular, boring _normal_ world? I don't think they could really put alternate dimension ninja on a résumé.

Jiraiya apparently wrote books or something so maybe he could find a job at a book store. As weird as that was to picture it was actually kind of fitting. Assuming of course he didn't get minors to read his own smutty creations, or shamelessly hit on any customers with large breasts. As for the other two…that was going to take some thought.

Grabbing a shopping cart I managed to maneuver through the overstuffed aisles until I finally reached the one that held toiletries. Sakumo didn't seem like the type to be picky over the kind of toothbrush so I grabbed one that would do the job and hopefully wouldn't be like running steel wool over one's teeth. Since I was here anyway I decided it wouldn't hurt to stock up on toothpaste, floss, generic toothbrushes and mouthwash while I was here. It was stuff I would eventually go through away, and if another _guest_ showed up in my apartment it would save me from having to make another trip.

Not that I was expecting the arrival of yet another unannounced person from an alternate dimension. In fact the very idea made me feel slightly nauseous. What would I do if a fourth one showed up? I didn't exactly have infinite space at my place.

I nearly jumped out of my skin when Minato seemed to reappear out of nowhere and placed razors, shave gel and a hairbrush in the cart, followed shortly after by Jiraiya who added shampoo, conditioner and body wash. When in the hell had they disappear and retrieved those things? Not that I wasn't grateful for the assistance, the sooner we got what we needed the sooner we could get out of here.

With bathroom items successful procured I decided the next thing on the list was to find where they kept the outdoor living or camping section and see if they had any foam padded sleeping mats. I couldn't afford to buy a second bed, and another couch big enough for one of them to comfortably sleep on wouldn't fit properly the way the living room was set-up, so foam mats would have to do.

As we were making our way to where I figured the camping section would be I took a short cut through the aisle where they kept their books. A relatively small collection of glossy paperbacks, and a few hardcovers decorated the shelves, their brightly coloured covers reflecting the fluorescent lighting from the ceiling overhead. In my personal opinion Wal-Mart wasn't known from carrying amazing works of literature but that didn't mean that an enjoyable book was impossible to find.

"What's this?" Jiraiya inquired curiously, plucking one of the glossy novels from its place on the shelf and inspecting it. A large, mischievous grin spread across his face followed by a slight blush on his cheeks as he began flipping through the pages.

Intrigued but what had the large, white-haired man so interested I snuck a quick peak at the cover of the book he was looking at and nearly burst out laughing. It was one of those knockoff Harlequin romance type books with a man and woman in period costume passionately tearing at each other's clothes on the cover. I should have known. That man was a magnet for smut, no matter how cheesy or badly written it seems.

"A book, you didn't think you were the only smut writer out there did you?" I playfully joked.

In response he teasingly ruffled my hair, again, sending a number of the coppery strands into disarray. "No, I've just never found an artist that can create such a realistic looking cover," he responded, cheerfully pointing to the cover in question for emphasis.

"Jiraiya-sensei, I don't think this is really appropriate right now. Perhaps it would be best to put the book back for now," Minato requested, a slight blush forming on his cheeks as well.

It was kind of cute, but I wasn't sure why he felt embarrassed by the book cover. They were just partially undressed fictional characters; it wasn't like it was real. Besides some of the images that were on the magazines at the check-outs where a lot worse.

Having deemed that there was no immediate threat lying in wait for us Sakumo had allowed himself to relax slightly, however that didn't prevent his alert, dark eyes from continually scanning our surroundings. Thankfully his rather unusual behavior went unnoticed and didn't send terrified shoppers fleeing for security.

"Sarah did not bring us here for books," Sakumo added.

"True, but I want this one," Jiraiya replied.

He seriously wanted some cheesy romance novel? I thought those books were targeted at middle-aged housewives who weren't getting any, but having never read one myself what did I know. Still if he wanted something to read there were better books to choose from. Selecting a book based on its cover wasn't always a great idea.

Although as far as cheesy, uninteresting, romantic storytelling went the Harlequin type novel probably wasn't the absolute worst thing he could have selected. I'd be more concerned if he had decided he wanted to read the Fifty Shades of Grey series. Pam enjoyed the books but I could never figure out what was so romantic about a guy that was basically a stalker. The take away message of '_boys what a girl really wants is for you to knock her on the back of the head with a brick, tie a ball gag in her mouth and then go to town_' was also extremely disturbing. Perhaps I was the only one that took the books that way though, Pam who had loaned me the series, apparently thought of them as nothing more than fluffy entertainment.

The last thing I need was for Jiraiya to get some freaky sex ideas from the books involving bondage, so in that respect a corny Harlequin type romance novel didn't seem so bad.

"Are you sure you? Those types of books tend to be unrealistic, over exaggerated, plot-less dribble of what the author thinks the target female reader would enjoy."

Not to say that men didn't read these books as well, I honestly had no idea.

A mockingly lecherous grin spread across Jiraiya's face. "Really…?"

"Not this female," I hastily added, "and I said it was unrealistic."

Jiraiya seemed temporarily disappointed before the lubricous, wide smile was back to full strength accompanied by a pair of suggestively wiggling eyebrows. "Come now, are you sure….?" He jovially taunted.

Not that I was an expert in what went on in their minds, not by any stretch of the imagination, but the white-haired man always seemed to get some amusement out of trying to tease me. At least I seriously hoped it was just harmless teasing and nothing more.

"If you want something to read I have books at home you can borrow," I offered.

However one look from the white-haired man told me that he had absolutely no interest in reading whatever it was I had to offer him, at least not yet anyway. I could have easily said no but I figured why not it was only $4.99. Terrible literature or not I wasn't the one that had to read it and the book would keep him entertained for a while, and an occupied Jiraiya was one that was less likely to do something inappropriate like go through my underwear.

"Alright fine," I relented, grabbing the book from his hands and tossing it in the cart, "but if the cashier asks I'm telling them it's for you."

We eventually made it to the section were they had tents and other camping equipment. After some searching I managed to find some Intex Fabric Camping Mats with built-in pillow cushions. They were anything but luxurious, but it had to be better than sleeping on the floor. With bathroom toiletries and beds taken care of that left finding a change of clothes for Sakumo. Like the mats the clothing wasn't going to be anything fancy but at least it was better than having to wear the same thing all the time.

As we walked past the electronics section towards Men's Apparel the three magical-ninja with me were suddenly mesmerized by the large, flat screen TV's displaying various movies. Sakumo was the first to break free from the spell of bright colours and flashing lights, his dark eyes quickly investigating the area to insure nothing had managed to slip in unexpected during his momentary lapse.

Perhaps they didn't have electronics where they were from? Then again, whether you owned electronics or not the dizzying display of TV's and other devices available was pretty hard to ignore sometimes. I know I was guilty of stopping to watch a couple minutes of a movie once or twice.

"The book is all I'm buying you Jiraiya," I teased dryly.

I didn't mind paying for a $5 book but I certainly drew the line at purchasing a new $300 Television, particularly when the one I had was working just fine. Although I image it was the movies that had their interest more so than the TVs themselves.

"Why don't Minato and I wait here while you and Sakumo pick out some clothes," Jiraiya suggested with a pleasant grin.

It was a reasonable suggestion but I was entirely uncertain of how I felt about it. I didn't like the idea of leaving Minato and Jiraiya on their own but they were adults and could behave as such, at least I hoped. Besides if they were to remain in my world for an extended period they were going to need to get jobs, and that would mean being able to manage in this new world without my help from time to time. I also didn't like the idea of being alone with Sakumo without Minato or Jiraiya there as a buffer but I was going to have to get over this silly nervousness sooner or later.

"Alright," I agreed.

Grabbing Minato by the upper arm I tugged him towards me. Had he chose to ignore my action there would have been no way I could have physically moved him on my own, thankfully he responded to my gesture and moved so that I would whisper into his ear more easily. "Make sure you keep an eye on him," I quietly ordered.

The blond-haired man nodded in reply, a knowing glint in his bright, blue eyes.

* * *

With Minato and Jiraiya currently entertained by the latest blockbuster releases I soon found myself alone with Sakumo in the men's clothing department. Still unsure of how I felt about our solo adventure I tried my best to push my unease aside and focus on the task at hand. Minato and Jiraiya had vouched that he was a good guy on more than one occasion so my unease had more to do with my unfamiliarity with him than it had anything to actually do with the man himself.

As we made our way through the department I grabbed a couple of bags of socks and underwear, since all three of them would need them, before moving on to sleepwear. Now there was a question, what did the silver-haired man prefer to sleep in because naked definitely wasn't an option? I don't care how toned he was for his age, pants where not going to be optional while staying in my apartment.

"I make you uncomfortable," Sakumo stated, a hint of sadness in his deep baritone.

"What makes you say that," I inquired with a nervous laugh.

This idea for Sakumo and I do to the rest of the shopping alone together was rapidly becoming uncomfortable. As I felt his ebony gaze begin to study me thoroughly I began to fidget nervously, suddenly unsure of what to do with my arms. This was worse than the times I had to pretend that I like the colourful, horrible sweaters my Nana had given me as gifts.

"You've been noticeably tense since we've left the others and you've hardly said a word," he calmly answered.

I felt terrible. I thought I had done a reasonable job of reining in my irrational fear, but apparently it was still managing to seep through. Awkward silence hung between us as I frantically searched for a way to apologise.

"Sakumo…I….," I began clumsily fumbling for words. "I don't mean to offend you, but yes I am a little uncomfortable right now. I guess it's because I don't really know you all that well yet."

"Are you worried that I intend to harm you?" Sakumo questioned concerned, a pained look in his dark eyes.

Hearing it spoken out loud it sounded almost silly however I would be lying if I said it wasn't at least a partial worry. Their abilities, though admittedly cool, scared the hell out of me and although I had reached a certain level of comfort around Minato and Jiraiya I had yet to reach that point with Sakumo. Not that I was worried that he might go completely psychotic and murder me, if I was he definitely wouldn't be staying at my apartment.

"Would you?" I questioned, curious to hear his response.

"Absolutely not," he immediately replied, repulsed at the mere suggestion that he would purposely harm someone obviously weaker than himself for no reason. "Sarah, you have offered the three of us food, clothing and shelter freely so in return for your kindness I am placing you under my protection. I will not harm you."

_Huh?_ What on earth did that mean, protection from what? Not that I wasn't flattered I just couldn't think of a situation where I would require the type of _protection_ a highly trained, magical-ninja was likely to provide. Up until the random appearance of mystical-ninja in my home my life was pretty normal so what exactly was he supposed to be protecting me from? It would have been nice if he could have protected me from that cheating bastard Richard but it was a little late for that.

"Uhh…thanks," I uneasily replied with a small grin, unsure how I was to respond to such a bold statement.

To my surprise our impromptu conversation, despite its awkwardness, seemed to help alleviate the remaining uncomfortable tension that lingered between us like a heavy cloud. Minato and Jiraiya were right, Sakumo, regardless of his titles or abilities, was just a really nice guy.

As we continued through men's apparel I grabbed a pair of plain, dark blue pajamas and held them up to the silver-haired man for his inspection. He stared curiously at the fabric for a few moments before nodding his head slightly. Sakumo was apparently an easygoing shopper and didn't really have much of an opinion on anything so far. I was tempted to grab the flashiest, most brightly colour shirt I could find in the store to test the theory but quickly decided against it. Our budding friendship was still new and I didn't want to risk prematurely snuffing it out because of some poorly timed teasing.

Sleepwear covered the next thing to tackle was daywear. Like I had with Minato and Jiraiya I was just going to keep things fairly simple. If it came to the point where they needed to get jobs they would want nicer clothes for interviews, but for now jeans, t-shirts and hoodies would have to do. Heading over to a rack of t-shirt in various colours I grabbed a couple of different sizes in blue and draped them over Sakumo's arm.

The silver-haired man momentarily stared down at the t-shirts currently resting over his arm before glancing up at me curiously.

"I don't know what size will fit you so you'll have to try them on," I answered to his unspoken question.

He immediately nodded in understanding.

Next we moved to the section of the department where they had men's jeans. Some were piled up on square tables according to style, others were placed in little rectangular cubbyholes along one wall, and others were hanging up on hangers. Like the t-shirts I had absolutely no idea what size jeans he wore, however he looked somewhat similar in size to my father so I figured that was a good starting area.

Grabbing a few pairs in various styles and sizes I added them to the collection of t-shirts hanging on his arm.

"Will start with those and go from there."

Satisfied with the current selection of clothing I ushered Sakumo towards the change rooms and patiently waited for his return. After a surprisingly short amount of time he returned with a noticeably lighter bundle of clothing and placed the items into the cart. Deciding that it probably wouldn't hurt to get a few extra clothing items for everyone I rounded up a few articles and added them to the cart. Luckily I still remember Jiraiya's and Minato's sizes from our previous shopping trip.

Before we left men's clothing to move on to shoes I found a forest-green hoodie and tossed it to Sakumo for him to try on. Though none of them seemed to be the least bit bothered by the weather I thought they should all at least have a warm sweater. A jacket probably would have been better but a sweater was better than nothing.

* * *

The remainder of the shopping trip passed without incident and I soon found myself back in the car with my three shopping companions heading for home. Wal-Mart had been more exhausting than I had expected and I was glad to have the trip over with. My stomach rumbled hungrily loudly reminding me that I had yet to eat dinner.

Minato, who had taken the front seat for the return trip turned to me with a small grin. "A little hungry are you?" His stomach chose that moment to grumble loudly signifying its own hunger.

"Apparently I'm not the only one," I teased good-naturedly.

After all the time we had spent at Wal-Mart it was getting close to 8 o'clock. It was no wonder we were all starting to feel a little hungry. In retrospect, since the store was open fairly late, it probably would have been a better idea to have made a quick meal first before heading out to do the shopping. However I had been so eager to get this necessary trip over and done with that I hadn't put any thought into eating beforehand.

Which was rather unfortunate since I wasn't really in the mood to cook anything now, but having just spent a bunch of money I didn't really feel like ordering anything either. My stomach gave another loud rumble demanding that I make a decision quickly before it decided to leap out my mouth and find sustenance on its own.

"I can make us something when we get back," Jiraiya cheerfully offered, leaning forward between the two front seats before I impatiently gestured for him to sit back.

I was probably going to regret it later but that sounded like a fantastic idea.

"Sure, just promise not to destroy my kitchen."

"Don't worry I'll make sure he won't," Minato reassured, fixing Jiraiya with a mocking glare over the back of his seat.

"I will help ensure that no damage is sustained by your kitchen as well," Sakumo's deep baritone added.

"Great, everyone's a critic," Jiraiya mumbled, folding his arms over his chest in fraudulent irritation.

The trip home seemed to go rather quickly and before I knew it we were stepping off the elevator to the 7th floor, shopping bags in hand. As I unlocked my door to allow everyone back inside my cellphone started ringing.

This was starting to become an extremely exhausting evening and I wasn't really in the mood chat with someone on the phone right now. I just wanted to get something to eat, change into something comfortable and quietly veg out in front of the TV for the remainder of the evening.

"Hello," I answered a little more testily than usual.

"Well geeze honey, could you sound a little less thrilled to hear from me?" Adam's voice sarcastically accused.

"Sorry Adam, it's been a long day," I apologised, feeling guilty for being so snappish earlier. It wasn't that I was in a bad mood or anything it was just that low-blood sugar tends to make me a little irritable, something Pam vexingly refers to as my being 'hangry'. "What's up?"

Thankfully Adam was well aware of how quickly irritated I could get, over seemingly pointless things, from time to time usually when I was hungry, and didn't take offence to my less than cheerful greeting.

"I haven't seen you for a while; why don't you come to the salon tomorrow and we'll do something fun with your hair."

I grabbed a few strands of long, red hair in my fingers staring at them disinterestedly as I pondered what I might have done with the silky tresses. It had been a while since I had last gone to see Adam at the salon and I could definitely use a change with my hairstyle. Not that there was anything wrong with the one I had I just like to change things up a bit.

"What did you have in mind?"

For several seconds nothing but silence greeted me on the other end of the line. Adam clearly had something in mind, he wouldn't have called me otherwise. "I'll let you know when you get here," he finally replied, the smirk unmistakable in his tone. "Should I book you in for say…4:30?"

I got off at 4pm and the salon where Adam worked wasn't far from the lab so 4:30 was definitely doable. Adam certainly had me curious over what he planned on doing to my hair, but I was just going to have to wait until tomorrow to find out what it was. His ideas were usually pretty good.

Placing my phone back in my pocket I entered my apartment and was confronted with the loud clashing sound of pots and pans, the vigorous chopping sound of vegetables, and the sound of three magical-ninja shouting at each other over the noise.

As I felt the chance for a calm, quiet evening slip through my fingers I couldn't help but laugh.

* * *

**Thank you for reading.**

**For the sake of the story I'm having Sakumo arrive from sometime during the second shinobi war. I'll admit I'm not entirely clear on the details surrounding this war but I assume that as a Leaf-ninja Sakumo would have had some part in it. By all means feel free to correct me if I'm mistaken. At first I thought the 3rd war would have made more sense but I think that takes place after Sakumo had died and Kakashi starts making a name for himself as the copy ninja. Again I am not an expect so my facts may be mixed up.  
**

**I'm not sure when I'll be back with the next chapter, but hopefully it won't take me months to write this time. Well, here's hoping anyway.**

**Until next time…**


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